A few days ago, I wrote about the three keys to success for the Wisconsin Badgers basketball team this season.
Because of the uncertainty of how this season will go considering how many transfer portal players were brought in, here are three questions for the Badgers this season.
How will Camren Hunter fit in?
Camren Hunter was highly regarded in the transfer portal and received interest from programs like Auburn and Arkansas. He is a very physical and strong guard who does a good job driving into the paint which the Badgers have lacked for a while now.
Hunter brings a lot of skills to the table but isn’t a pass-first guard from which the Badgers might benefit. I expect him to start most games but it could be interesting to see if Wisconsin leans on another guard like Daniel Freitag or Max Klesmit to be the passer they need on offense.
Can Steven Crowl anchor this frontcourt on both sides of the ball?
Steven Crowl started his 2023 season very strong but slowed down midway through the season. He got more physical in the Big Ten Tournament but also became more foul-prone because of it.
Crowl needs to find a happy medium where he can contribute points on the offensive end and be the anchor for Wisconsin’s frontcourt by being physically in the paint and grabbing rebounds. His key matchups this season will be against centers like Oumar Ballo for Indiana and Vlad Goldin from Michigan.
How much playing time will Freitag/Robison get?
I think this Wisconsin freshman class is very underrated because it addresses some of the issues it had last year. There was a lack of athleticism from players not named AJ Storr which is something that Daniel Freitag can help fix.
There was a lot of inconsistency from beyond the three-point line which Jack Robison can also help address. I expect Gard to give Freitag as much playing time as Blackwell got last season and maybe even more if he excels in this point guard role.
Blackwell’s role slowly increased to the point where he started multiple games in the Big Ten Tournament for the Badgers. Freitag brings skills that have been a weakness for Wisconsin for quite a while now, so it will be interesting to see how he fits into this system.
