Wisconsin Basketball: Connor Essegian’s Lack of Playing Time Explained

Four games into the 2023-24 season, Wisconsin basketball fans are all wondering the same thing: Why isn’t sophomore shooting guard Connor Essegian getting more playing time?

After suffering a back injury in the season opener — the 6-foot-4 wing has officially been removed from the injury report for the last two contests after being designated as a game-time decision against No. 9 Tennessee. 

Essegian is averaging 2.0 points and 0.8 rebounds on 33% shooting from the field in just over seven minutes per game off the bench this season. Leaving many fans wanting to know — what’s going on? Is the back injury still lingering? 

Wisconsin Basketball Head Coach Greg Gard Discusses Connor Essegian’s Lack of Playing Time 

Following the Wisconsin basketball team’s 78-68 home victory over Robert Morris on Friday night, Greg Gard was asked about the former All-Big Ten freshman standout after the game — and why he hasn’t been receiving consistent playing time.

“He’s practiced more consistently here,” Gard said. “He’s fine. He just needs to get back in a rhythm. I thought he was cutting and moving better in practice. We got to help him be better defensively…You have to be able to guard. You have to be able to guard.”

The last part of Gard’s answer is the key: defense. The defensive end of the floor wasn’t exactly a strong suit of Essegian’s as a freshman — and although it’s a small sample size — he has endured his fair share of struggles this season. According to Barttorvik, Essegian has a DBPM of 0.2, the third lowest on the team, ahead of only AJ Storr and Markus Ilver.

He also has the lowest PRPG and ORTG among the Wisconsin basketball team’s rotational regulars. Now, these early season struggles are almost certainly a result of a lingering back issue that he’s working back from. But with the season underway and a demanding schedule ahead, Coach Gard isn’t willing to let him work through it on the floor if it hurts the team.

The season is young, and Essegian will eventually reclaim his role as a high-usage scorer off the bench — but for now, the Wisconsin basketball coaching staff needs to see more on defense before they cut their sharpshooter loose.

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