Wisconsin basketball lost one of its key pieces this last offseason when John Blackwell decided to transfer for his final season of eligibility. He went to Duke of all places, in a move to capitalize on his college value and to chase a championship. Wisconsin fans are all over the board on the decision, from understanding to frustration. But no matter where you fall, finding a way to take on Duke next season and then ultimately burying them would be sweet.
Even if you are on the side of understanding that Blackwell's highest value may be now and not later in the NBA, so he should cash in now. Taking down Duke is still a wonderful thing, and taking down a John Blackwell-led Duke is even better. Joe Lunardi is forecasting that exact idea in his 2027 NCAA March Madness projection.
If things play out the way Lunardi thinks they could next season, he has Duke as a No. 1 seed in the south region playing against a play-in game of Vermont and Bethune-Cookman Wildcats. In the No. 8 vs. No. 9 game, where the winner would take on No. 1 Duke, it is projected as No. 8 Auburn vs. No. 9 Wisconsin. Setting the table for a real "I told you so" moment for somebody. Whether that's Blackwell or Wisconsin.
Joe Lunardi's March Madness projection has a potential Duke vs. Wisconsin 2nd round matchup
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Blackwell would get the "I told you so" for saying, see Greg Gard's Wisconsin team can't make it out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. How can they win a championship if they can't even advance past the first weekend? The Badgers, on the other hand, with a win, would get that "I told you so" moment by showing Blackwell he should have stayed.
Now, of course, this is really only taking Blackwell's word for "wants to win a championship" as his primary motivation for leaving. If it were to cash in, there wasn't anything Gard could have done to compete with Duke. The money the Blue Devils were offering was far more than what Wisconsin could bring to the table.
The projected number that it took to bring in Blackwell to Duke was around $4 million, according to On3.com, with Duke prepared to spend a total of $20 million for their total roster. That's not a level Wisconsin hoops is at or really can compete with.
The NCAA Tournament would be the only spot that Wisconsin could face off against Duke and John Blackwell next season. With the scheduled opponents finalized, Duke and Wisconsin will not see each other at all in the regular season. Therefore, it would take a projection like Lunardi's to actually make this matchup happen.
There may be some Wisconsin fans who would hate to see this happen, avoid the drama and the pain, but many would be eager for the chance. The Badgers embraced being the villain last year; this is a great way to be the villain by knocking off the actual villain.
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