The Badgers signed their first portal commitment yesterday in Trey Autry, a 6'4 senior guard from George Washington. He's the son of a coach (Red Autry) and loves to shoot the three. That's a huge first add, but it's nowhere near enough to replace what was lost this offseason. Four starters and the best player off the bench (Braeden Carrington) are all gone.
Gard has more work to do. Here are three options that Wisconsin should target in the portal.
Nolan Minnessale - Guard - St. Thomas-Minnesota
There's no way that Autry is the final guard addition, even though Wisconsin is very guard/wing heavy right now. Minnessale is another name that was floating around with the Badgers interested in the transfer portal. He was electric for St. Thomas-Minnesota last year, scoring 19.8 points per game. It's hard to project how that will translate to the Big Ten, but he's clearly got a knack for getting to the hoop. He would be a great flyer in the transfer portal.
Minnessale is also from the state of Wisconsin and may be looking to return home.
Will Hornseth - Forward - Northern Iowa
Another in-state product that fits an Austin Rapp-type role. It would be another option down low for the Badgers. He's 6'8, so a bit undersized from what Greg Gard likes in his bigs, but he has the capability to shoot the three. He didn't get a lot of opportunities in the offense that Northern Iowa runs (keeping the bigs low), but when he did shoot the three, he went 44% from behind the arc.
It's not the best option, but don't be surprised to see Hornseth or a player like him to provide another body in the rotation of big men.
Dailyn Swain - Guard/Forward - Texas
Wisconsin always has at least one player they can throw a little extra money at. They did it last year with Boyd and probably Winter and Blackwell, too. But right now, only Winter is really commanding money on the current roster. Gard will, most likely, have one splash signing. Dailyn Swain from Texas would be a huge one. He's way more Blackwell than Autry and doesn't really have a position. He averaged 17.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists last year.
Somehow, he's flying under the radar in most circles. Sure, this is probably not who Gard goes after, but this list needed a flier; the other two choices are safe bets. Swain is long and big at 6'7. Plays mostly the 3 but can slide into a down-low position when Gard goes to smaller lineups. This would be a huge get and one of the top players on "my" list.
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