Is Badger Basketball in Trouble?

Marquette is probably a borderline tournament team, nothing more, nothing less.  Yet they worked over the Badgers at home and it wasn't even as close as re score indicated.  

I like the youngsters but other than Happ the rest of this upperclassmen group flat out sucks.  It's one thing to miss on one player but they missed on several of them and there isn't enough coaching in Dane County to make them a whole lot better. 

We've been spoiled by this program but man this looks like a below .500 team.  I can't recall the last time we said that about a UW squad.  Just have to hope the young guys live up to the billing. 

They have no size. Happ and a bunch of Gs, basically. Reuvers is promising, but VV has nothing to offer. Illikainen is overmatch. There’s nothing else...

Ryan's last recruiting classes were terrible and the current product reflects that.  

Since '14, Happ.  Maybe Pritzl.  15' was particularly dreadful considering the final 4's Bucky was attending consistently.  

Bad basketball

At least Gard's first class looks to have talent.  

This team was a borderline .500 team, but it's kind of hard to do much when you are missing Trice and King today. And, even worse, it looks like they will both be out for extended periods of time. Davidson looks like a player and Happ is a great college player, but when you are weak to begin with and then lose 2 of your top 6 rotation players, it's trouble. They may be lucky to win 10 games this year. 

Wisconsin basketball thrives by developing guys like Frank Kaminsky who are lightly regarded and then improve tremendously. The guys they get aren't good enough when they arrive to be competitive without the typical improvement. The development pipeline seems to have failed on these recent classes. It's really the 2015 recruiting class that's really killed them. Those guys looked like one of their deepest recruiting classes ever (multiple 4 star recruits). There appear to be a bunch of role players, but no front-line starters.  

2014 Class: Ethan Happ, TJ Schlundt

2015 Class: Iverson, Thomas, Pritzl, Illikainen, Van Vliet

2016 Class: Trice, Ford

2017 Class: Reuvers, King, Davison

Half their scholarship guys are from the 2015 class. The other 2014 and 2016 classes only have 4 guys between them and produced 2 of their best 3 players. The 2017 class looks like to be really strong, but that 2015 class is going to drag them down this season and next unless something turns around soon. 

I've been waiting for the Belgian and Pritzl to do something, anything in the Belgians case.  I do not follow recruiting and one of my info hot spots was right here and a couple of yrs ago Pritzl was all the rage.  I am underwhelmed.

Trice is another, If not a disappointment he has not improved much.  The other night against Temple Happ had to bring the ball up against the press.  Why?  Cause Trice failed in that role against Penn State.

Till today they were in most games so I guess we can hang our hat on that.

I miss football....

Pikes Peak posted:

I've been waiting for the Belgian and Pritzl to do something, anything in the Belgians case.  I do not follow recruiting and one of my info hot spots was right here and a couple of yrs ago Pritzl was all the rage.  I am underwhelmed.

Trice is another, If not a disappointment he has not improved much.  The other night against Temple Happ had to bring the ball up against the press.  Why?  Cause Trice failed in that role against Penn State.

Till today they were in most games so I guess we can hang our hat on that.

I miss football....

It's not clear if Trice has been hampered by the foot injury. That would be my guess. 

Happ is a redshirt junior this year. He's a borderline end of the bench NBA guy, but maybe he can play a few years in the G league. I wonder if he'll leave after this year? Playing for an 8-20 team after going to the Sweet 16 the first two years you've been active (and being a redshirt on the Final 4 team) has got to get to you at some point.

MichiganPacker2 posted:

I wonder if he'll leave after this year?

No

El-Ka-Bong posted:

MichiganPacker2 posted:

I wonder if he'll leave after this year?

No

I hope not. 

Why would he?  Does he look like a sure fire first round pick right now?  

So, is it just that they’re such a young team.  Sophomores and Freshman???  I keep thinking they’re just babies..... am I wrong???

You're not wrong, Goldie.  They are young and will get better as they play more together.  An earlier poster was spot on about the lack of star power on some earlier draft classes.  That is what is hurting us now.  I really can't believe they made a huge error with VV....all the hype was that he was going to be this superstar that will continue the UW dominance.

Looks like Kobe King is out for the year.....knee

They aren't going to win many games the rest of the year, but Brad Davison may set a Badger freshman scoring record for Big 10 play. No one is going to let Happ get shots off and Davison is the only player they have right now that can create his own offense. Pritz, Illikainen, and Van Vliet are all catch and shoot guys (and they've been disappointing at that so far); Iverson and C. Thomas are just bangers who are very limited offensively; and Reuvers and Ford are both guys that would have redshirted in any of the previous 5-6 years.

Davison is going to get a lot of shots by default.

yep....gonna be a loooooonnnng season.

#Badgers personnel likely fluid but Van Vliet off scout team and with top unit today.

— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) December 12, 2017

At this point, there is nothing to lose. Time to outscore the opponent Loyola Marymount style.

SanDiegoPackFan posted:

yep....gonna be a loooooonnnng season.

Loooooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnngggggggg

Eeeked out a 81-80 win over Western Kentucky.  Smart play be Davidson drawing a charge on an in bound play with .9 seconds left.  He made 1st free throw and intentionally missed the second. 

Well.  We have a lot of young "green" components this year.   I just want to see improvement and some cohesiveness as the season wears on.  There's still a chance for the NIT.

It looks like bad recruiting to me.

King, Davidson and Reuvers look like they are going back in the right direction.

Herro decommitted because his stock was rising and he is a bright lights, "look at me" type player....not a Badger type, IMO. Also I heard there were issues with his ACT score.

A great play from the basketball archives of Coach Ryan. We practiced that play repeatedly back in the day. https://t.co/Uu2SsVkjHo

— Dave Mader (@DaveMader30) December 14, 2017

On the inbounds play to win the game

They obviously really need Davidson, but geez kid, maybe you need to sit down for awhile and heal.  

For what it's worth, my initial thoughts on this team were pretty negative but the more I see the better I like it.  Down the road that is.  Davison, Ford, Ruevers and King look to be players next year.  Throw in Pritzl, Iverson  and of course Happ and a mid to high mid Big 10 finish looks achievable.  It will be fun watching the development this year.   Too bad the Belgian looks to be a stiff.

Happ might be the best complimentary player in college basketball, to bad he has to be the star on this team

Agree.  Especially the take on the VV.  The Belgian is a big disappointment....or...he was hyped way too much by the Badger staff.   Who knows, maybe he finds himself and will become that off-the-bench spark at some point.

Archie Miller looks like Flounder from Animal House

Really need this win tonight. Currently up 62-51 with 4:19 left.  5 of the next 6 are on the road. 

Real recognizes real. ✊#OnWisconsin || #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/kC99pJaMYM

— Wisconsin Basketball (@BadgerMBB) January 3, 2018

Please don't misconstrue this as criticism because it isn't. But #Badgers had three guys who joined program as former walk-ons play a total of 49 minutes.

— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) January 3, 2018

I wonder if AR 12 has any college BB eligibility left?  If so, suit him up. 

This team might end up only winning 12-14 games, but games like this prove how good a coach Gard is. Minus Happ, this is a roster that you'd see at UW-Stevens Point. And they beat a Big 10 team filled with 4 star recruits. 

burn 🔥 😂

(via @moeschpotato5) pic.twitter.com/xri0OjYlTN

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) January 3, 2018

ammo posted:

I wonder if AR 12 has any college BB eligibility left?  If so, suit him up. 

that sure would be nice   #12 a shooting guard

did I hear # 12 say to andy north he was dating hot nascar babe danica patrick???

http://www.hawtcelebs.com/wp-c...ork-09-27-2016_1.jpg

nice win over Indiana last nite 

...only Goldie knows for sure!!!!!  

She is no longer a nascar driver.

She is for one more race, this years Daytona 500.

Holy **** was Bucky awful tonight

Agree.  Ug.

This was a Rutgers team that Bucky coulda/shoulda beat on the road, too. 

Horrible 3-pt shooting and horrible defense down the stretch.  I thought for sure when Davison hit the three to tie it at 56, that we would win the game.  Then, we decided to not play defense.   Still need Happ to make more Free Throws.

10-7 sounds better than 9-8.   Oh Well.  Young guys making mistakes.  Others not owning up on their Defense.  I thought 17 or 18 wins (with a good showing in the B1G Tourney) might get them to the dance.  

Still a ways to go, but this was a game they needed to win.

Happ was horrible, might have been his worst game as a Badger

They just really struggle to score at times.