The Wisconsin men’s basketball season starts with more than a home opener against Denver. It starts with a roster that looks different again, a staff that believes it found the right blend, and a program still chasing its first conference title in four seasons.
The Badgers overhauled the roster for the second year in a row, adding eight players to a group that went 24-11 and made only a brief NCAA Tournament stay last season. This time, the mix is built around a different set of pieces. Wisconsin’s staff hopes that combination can push the program forward when the 2026-27 campaign tips off tonight at the Kohl Center.
One of the biggest reasons UW believes it can keep competing is the way it spends. According to a CBS Sports report, Wisconsin remains among the lower spenders in high-major basketball, with a roster budget estimated between $10-12 million. Even so, the Badgers made their money count by pairing returners with newcomers and prioritizing the frontcourt after expecting guard John Blackwell to transfer, which he did to Duke.
That left Austin Rapp and Nolan Winter as the foundation. Once those two stayed in place, Wisconsin could build around them with a group that includes three college transfers - Trey Autry, Eian Elmer, and Victory Onuetu - plus Owen Foxwell, who brings international experience at point guard, and four freshmen who can be developed over time.
The challenge now is turning that collection into a unit. That has not always come easily for programs that lean heavily on portal additions, and Wisconsin’s own experience last season was uneven. The Badgers did not fully settle in until mid-January, and the early stretch of this season should give them room to sort things out before the schedule tightens in December, when six of seven games come against power-conference opponents.
Defense is where Wisconsin wants to make its biggest jump. Last season, the Badgers went 8-6 when opponents reached 80 points, a sign that their offense often covered for a defense that never fully clicked. UW finished 56th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom, its worst mark since the 2018-19 season.
Greg Gard has made it clear that getting back to that defensive identity matters. That explains why Wisconsin targeted the players it did, especially Onuetu for shot blocking and Elmer for active hands.
In the final exhibition against Oklahoma State, Elmer had three of the team’s eight steals as Wisconsin forced 22 turnovers against nine assists. The Badgers also limited perimeter looks, holding the Cowboys to 5-for-24 from deep.
“We were proactive defensively rather than being reactive,” Gard said. “Watching their first two games, I thought we were going to have a hard time containing the penetration. I thought we did a pretty good job for the most part.”
The defensive growth showed as the preseason competition level climbed from Division 2 to the Horizon League and then the Big 12. That is encouraging, but Wisconsin still needs more than flashes if it wants to hold up over the course of the season.
Offensively, the Badgers are looking for another transfer to become a difference-maker. Wisconsin has had a transfer elevate his game and lift the program in each of the past three seasons, and point guard Nick Boyd became the first UW player to average 20 or more points per game since Michael Finley in 1995, finishing at 20.7.
Elmer is the next candidate to make that kind of leap. The 6-6 junior started every game for Miami (OH), averaged 12.7 points, and led the RedHawks in three-point percentage at 42.9 and rebounds at 5.9.
He also posted the team’s second-best defensive performance rating, according to EvanMiya.com, while finishing with 42 steals and 23 blocks. His size lets him defend multiple spots, but Wisconsin brought him in to produce on a team that lost its top two scorers.
The Badgers feel good about most of the starting group they used in exhibitions. Winter, Elmer, Onuetu, and Foxwell give them production, rim protection, and steady playmaking. The biggest unknown is Jack Janicki.
Janicki has the most experience of the guard group outside Winter, with 63 games in a Wisconsin uniform, but his second season went off track long before a February wrist injury ended it. He shot 32.3 percent overall and 27.7 percent from three, both the lowest marks among Badgers averaging double-digit minutes, and he attempted just five free throws.
Against Parkside, he scored five points. Against Green Bay and Oklahoma State, he was scoreless.
That is a sharp contrast to the high school version of Janicki, who topped 2,000 points. Wisconsin still values what he brings defensively, especially his awareness and ability to handle switches, but the offense needs more. The staff also sees second-year guards Hayden Jones and Zach Kinziger as players who can take a step forward.
For some fans, though, the season will eventually come down to a much bigger test: whether Wisconsin can get past the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 11 seasons. The Badgers have built this roster around Winter with more size and more experience, aiming for a team that can stretch the floor, play faster, and defend with more length around the rim.
In theory, that gives Wisconsin the versatility to handle different styles and different sizes. Whether it actually translates when the games get bigger is the question that will take the longest to answer.
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