One of the stat nerd sites of the basketball world, Torvik, has produced a list of the top projected point per game leaders, and John Blackwell is in the top 10. Torvik has his PPG projected at 18.3, which would be up about three points per game from last year.
The list features many of the names you would expect, with JT Toppin at the top of the list and the Big Ten's leading scorer from last season, Nick Martinelli, coming in at sixth. Ohio State's Bruce Thornton is listed at seventh. Those are the only other Big Ten players ahead of Blackwell.
Projected PPG leaders in college basketball next season, per Torvik pic.twitter.com/M23yUqbMMX
— College Basketball Report (@CBKReport) August 13, 2025
John Blackwell is projected as a top 10 scorer next basketball season
Last season, Blackwell averaged 15.8 points per game, which was good for second on the Badgers behind John Tonje, who averaged 19.6. Which, as insane as it is, was good for 26th in all of college basketball last season. The big difference between the projections and reality is the small school performers.
If you take out the random low-level schools, Tonje would have finished 10th. He had one of the most impressive single seasons in Wisconsin basketball history. Now, the projection is that Blackwell will put up another.
That's good news for not only Blackwell, who's working to improve his NBA stock, but also the Wisconsin Badgers, who are looking to go deeper in the NCAA Tournament and to win the Big Ten this year. A dynamic Blackwell would help massively.
Blackwell had eight games last year with 20+ points and even a couple of 30+ points games. He knows how to turn it on and take over a game when needed. With Tonje often doing the same, it wasn't always required from Blackwell. He didn't mind playing Robin to Tonje's Batman, but now it's time for him to be the star while those around him are balancing it out.