It’s been just over a month since the Wisconsin basketball season ended in Brooklyn. The Badgers lost to James Madison in a dreaded 5-12 matchup. Since then, Wisconsin basketball has lost a number of influential players, including Tyler Wahl, AJ Storr, Chucky Hepburn and Connor Essegian.
Over the past week, the Badgers have signed three transfer players to replace Wahl, Storr and Hepburn. They are Cameron Hunter, Xavier Amos and John Tonje. With the modern additions and first-year defender Daniel Freitag, here’s how I see the lineup I’m currently looking at.
Wisconsin basketball projected starters: Cameron Hunter, Max Klesmit, John Tonje, Xavier Amos, Steven Crowl
I think this is a clear top five to start with. Greg Gard didn’t bring in these signings to come off the bench. If they did, they would be wasting their time. Hunter didn’t play last season, but he averaged 17 points per game for Central Arkansas in 2022-23. At 6-foot-4 and nearly 200 pounds, Hunter should be one of the Big Ten’s stronger defenders.
Amos, a transfer to Northern Illinois, carries a lot of promise in this game. He averaged nearly 14 points per game last year, including 27 points at Northwestern. Combine that with his 38% three-point shooting percentage, and Wisconsin basketball could find a steal in the portal.
Tonje just made a commitment today. He played at Missouri last season. After playing in just eight games last year due to injury, Tonje committed to playing for New Mexico just a few days ago. However, Gard managed to knock Tonje down. At 6’1″ and 210 pounds, he’s a slightly smaller version of AJ Storr.
Klesmit and Crowl are the main pillars of this starting lineup and will be the leaders of this team. Both had strong seasons last year and will be asked to lead and produce again in 2024-25.
Wisconsin basketball projected rotation: John Blackwell, Kamari McGee, Daniel Freitag, Nolan Winter, Markus Ilver, Carter Gilmore
Wisconsin basketball has four solid players on the bench in Blackwell, McGee, Freitag and Winter. Even though Freitag will be a true rookie, he is already one of the most electrifying players on this squad. Blackwell and Winter were really good as freshmen last season. Blackwell even made the All-Freshman team. Both should exercise more than 20 minutes a day. McGee is the spark plug of energy on this team.
I will add Ilver and Gilmore, but it will depend on how the game goes. Gard need an attack before the media break, it will be Ilver. If it’s going to keep you out of bad trouble, it’s going to be Gilmore.
One player I wouldn’t sleep on is freshman Jack Robison. He could be a redhsirt candidate, but I could also see him taking a few minutes in the rotation.
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