Badger Player Ratings if EA Made a College Basketball Video Game

Team Overall: 77

A 77 rating feels low, but when Wisconsin's talent level drops, it plummets. They still have six players rated above 80 overall, but without elite players and a rocky back-end of the rotation, it drags down the team grade. Like the real-life Badgers, it's a good bet virtual Greg Gard and company outperform expectations, but the ceiling of this video-game squad falls into the hands of the person holding the controller.

Steven Crowl: 88 Overall

Crowl is one of the more underrated bigs in the country and while an 88 overall figure may surprise some, it’s well deserved. The fifth-year senior has no glaring holes in his game and is an excellent threat out of the post and from the three-point line. He shot 44.8 percent from three last season. Add in some excellent passing, and you’ve got a near-90 overall player.

Xavier Amos: 86 Overall

Amos checks all the boxes for a highly-rated  power forward, he just needs to showcase it on the floor with Wisconsin before being jumping up into the 90’s. He can defend inside and out, attack the basket off the dribble and shoot it at a high clip. Amos’ only weaknesses are in ball handling, passing and shooting off the dribble, things that shouldn’t factor much into his rating. 86 feels like a safe starting point for the NIU transfer, but Amos’ potential is massive.

Max Klesmit: 85 Overall

Klesmit’s a prototypical 3-and-D wing who has some playmaking chops. An 85 rating matches Klesmit’s identity as a quality starter in one of basketball’s best conferences.

John Tonje: 83 Overall

The Missouri version of Tonje definitely shouldn’t be an 83, but he gets the benefit of the doubt for averaging 14.6 points per game with Colorado State in 2022-23 and battling an injury before being shut down in his lone season with the Tigers. Plus, he’s an all-around player that should be rated well in most categories.

John Blackwell: 82 Overall

Blackwell was one of the best freshman in the Big 10 last season and has plenty of versatility. He can shoot, score, play make and defend several positions. Add on the expected sophomore leap and you’ve got one of the best bench players in the conference. Yes, he outranks projected starting PG Camren Hunter, but Coach Greg Gard used Blackwell as a backup small forward in 2023-24 rather than a primary ball-handler.

Camren Hunter: 80 Overall

Hunter draws the short straw here, falling at 80 overall despite being penciled in as the Badgers’ starting point guard. The talent level is probably greater than his rating indicates, but after missing all of 2023-24 with a foot injury and having question marks around how quick he’ll latch on to Big 10 play, an 80 rating is a safe floor that gives him room to grow.

Nolan Winter: 77 Overall

Though Winter is the seventh-highest rated player on the team, his video-game version might be the most fun to play. Winter’s unique blend of size and mobility presents plenty of opportunities to get creative, while his shooting prowess and potential to attack off the dribble could make him a cheat code. Being below 80 overall limits some of the excitement, but Winter's ratings should skyrocket as he develops.

Daniel Freitag: 75 Overall

Freitag is the highest rated point guard recruit in Badgers’ history. Still, he hasn’t played a possession at the college level, capping his overall in this hypothetical.

Kamari McGee: 73 Overall

McGee is a high-effort player whose impacts often don’t show up on the stat sheet, leading to his 73 rating. His defensive attributes are strong, but he’s too small to consistently score inside and has an unreliable jumper.

Carter Gilmore: 71 Overall

Like McGee, Gilmore's impact often goes unnoticed in the box score, but he's a high-level rebounder, quality defender and a high IQ player. His weaknesses are glaring, but he does enough things well to earn a 71 rating.

Markus Ilver: 69 Overall

Ilver’s a stretch four who hasn’t shown any consistency from long range, shooting 22.2% on threes during his career. He’s not a great defender and can’t handle the ball, but he’s a solid rebounder. 69 overall may look a little high based on that description, but he’s still a fringe rotation piece for a high-end basketball program.

Andrija Vukovic: 68 Overall

Nobody really knows what to expect out of the Serbian freshman this season, considering there’s not much tape available on Vukovic and it’s unclear if he’ll even be part of the rotation in 2024-25. 68 overall shows he’s got some raw traits, but shouldn’t be of much significance in the upcoming year.

Jack Robison: 67 Overall

Robison may not be a rotation option this season, but as a freshman on scholarship, I figured I’d throw him in here anyway. Despite his shooting ability, Robison is still quite raw, with a slender frame and doesn’t offer much off the dribble at this point. Still, I like his long term prospects.