How Wisconsin Men’s Basketball Transfers Fared in 2023-24

The transfer portal giveth and it also taketh away. However, Wisconsin basketball owes a good deal of its success to the moves made by Greg Gard and his coaching staff in the portal.

Players like AJ Storr from St. John’s, Max Klesmit from Wofford, and Kamari McGee from UW-Green Bay have all come in as transfers and become meaningful contributors for the Badgers.

Furthermore, Wisconsin basketball probably wouldn’t have won either of its last two Big Ten regular season titles without Micah Potter and Chris Vogt, both of whom were transfer portal additions in the frontcourt. I’d argue that Jahcobi Neath was a miss — but I digress.

The key takeaway is that the transfer portal has become a permanent fixture in college sports, with an average of about 3+ players departing program’s each offseason. Right now, Connor Essegian, Gus Yalden, and Storr are the Badgers scholarship players looking for new homes.

This got me thinking about how the Wisconsin basketball outgoing transfers from years past performed during the season. Because the Badgers have, for the most part, not had too many situations where the departed transfer players went on to have an illustrious career.

Here’s a rundown of how former Wisconsin basketball players performed with their new programs in the 2023-24 season.

Jordan Davis (Illinois State): Davis averaged 15.2 minutes, 3.5 points, and 2.7 rebounds per game, shooting 31% overall and 28% from 3. 

Per Barttorvik, Davis had a (-0.7) points above replacement per game. 

Ben Carlson (Utah): Carlson averaged 17.3 minutes, 5.5 points, and 3.6 rebounds per game, shooting 43% overall and 31% from 3.

Per Barttorvik, Carlson had a (1.1) points above replacement per game. 

Matthew Mors (South Dakota): Mors averaged 10.5 minutes, 3.5 points, and 1.5 rebounds per game, shooting 45% overall and 26% from 3.

Per Barttorvik, Mors had a (0.4) points above replacement per game. 

Tai Strickland (LIU-Brooklyn): Strickland averaged 30.9 minutes, 14.2 points and 2.6 assists, shooting 43% overall and 24% from 3. 

Per Barttorvik, Strickland had a (1.1) points above replacement per game. 

Lorne Bowman (Oakland): No longer on the Grizzlies roster and had to miss out on the Jack Gohlke show in the NCAA Tournament. 

Final Thoughts on the Wisconsin Basketball Transfers 

First of all, yes, Tai Strickland actually played Division One college basketball this past season.

He was a member of the Wisconsin basketball team’s putrid 2018 recruiting class that almost featured Tyler Herro, who is now onto his second NBA contract. His classmates, Joe Hedstrom and Taylor Currie, never made an impact on the Badgers. 

Outside of Carlson at Utah, who has been a serviceable rotational piece at a decent program, most of the Wisconsin basketball team’s outgoing transfers haven’t developed into much of anything to write home about at their next stop. 

By regaining those scholarships, Greg Gard has been able to supplement the Badgers’ returning players each season and fill roster gaps. This could also become a discussion about Gard’s recent recruiting track record, but that’s another entirely different conversation. 

Fast forward to today, and there’s a decent chance that the Wisconsin basketball team’s outgoing transfers can make more of an impact at their next stop. We’ve seen what AJ Storr can do — which is why he’ll likely get a massive NIL deal from a major program. 

Connor Essegian was buried on the depth chart by guards who simply gave the Badgers more than he did, but teams will assuredly line up to add the sharpshooter. Gus Yalden has talent; that’s not the problem; it’s that he couldn’t get out of his own way. Yalden could still have a nice college career if he takes himself more seriously — the low-post game is legit. 

If recent history is any indicator, though, I’m probably wrong.

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