There's no other way to say this but that John Blackwell was snubbed by the Big Ten Awards. One of the best players in the conference wasn't on the First Team, Second Team, or Third Team Awards. He was left down in the honorable mentions. This brought a ton of scorn from Wisconsin fans and even other Big Ten fans. Now a former player has weighed in on Instagram. Max Klesmit couldn't believe it.
Max Klesmit sharing some thoughts! pic.twitter.com/ipnh9kzhN3
— Dr. Marte (@Badgers_44) March 11, 2025
Max Klesmit called John Blackwell's snub in the Big Ten Awards "laughable."
Max Klesmit jumped to his teammates' defense on Instagram. Klesmit shared the Wisconsin basketball account's post on John Blackwell being an Honorable Mention. His message above it was, "This is laughable." In other words, this is complete disrespect for a player who is one of the best in the Big Ten.
John Blackwell had some amazing stats this year for Wisconsin and outpaced players on both the third and second team award lists. Here's a look at his regular season stats from the 2025 season:
Blackwell's 2025 per game stats:
15.6 points
5.2 rebounds
2.2 assists
32.6% from three
45.6% from the field
Those are pretty solid and should easily have brought an inclusion into a higher list on the awards. However, he was snubbed and even teammate Max Klesmit realizes how brutal that is. Now, Blackwell needs to take that chip into the Big Ten Tournament and the NCAA Tournament and continue to go off.
To finish the season, Blackwell scored 19 against Penn State, 25 against Minnesota, 16 against Michigan State, and 24 against Washington. He's been on a tear lately, which makes you wonder if the voters even watch Big Ten basketball at all.
Wisconsin's next game is in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament and the Badgers will take on the winner of No. 12 Minnesota or No. 13 Northwestern.