The final basketball recruiting rankings for 2025 from On3.com have been revealed today, and there was a surprise for Wisconsin fans. Zach Kinziger is no longer the highest-rated recruit for Greg Gard and the Badgers for 2025, though it's very close. It is now Hayden Jones from New Zealand who is listed as a 4-star prospect with a score of 90.
Hayden Jones just became Wisconsin's best 2025 recruit, according to On3... https://t.co/ilZnl6zq9W
— Badger of Honor (@BadgerOfHonorFS) April 28, 2025
Hayden Jones from New Zealand is now a 4-star prospect by On3.com
Hayden Jones is unranked by ESPN or 24/7 Sports, and until these final rankings, On3 was also unranked by them. He was unheralded as an international recruit, but now that On3 has had a chance to watch and evaluate him, they have proclaimed him Wisconsin's best recruit. With Kinziger listed just one point behind him as an 89. Will Garlock isn't far behind those two at an 86.
These three give Wisconsin a pretty solid recruiting class now, with two four-star prospects and one three-star. This is a helpful boost to see for Wisconsin fans, as they didn't quite know what to make of Jones, but now there's some validation that he's a stud.
On3.com lists Jones as the 103rd-best recruit in the 2025 class and the 27th-best shooting guard. He is listed as 6'5", though he lists himself as 6'7" on his Instagram page. He plays big and long for the New Zealand National Team and is one of the youngest players to do so.
He seems to fit Greg Gard's system perfectly, and he may end up being needed as a true freshman. The depth on the bench this year doesn't look as strong as it has in the past unless Gard is expecting more contributions from the freshmen coming in. With this latest recruiting ranking, that may be precisely what he's expecting from Jones and Kinziger.