Wisconsin basketball’s most important player according to one site may surprise you

Greg Gard went into the portal and rebuilt most of his starting lineup after losing some stars and core seniors. The lone two returning starters are John Blackwell and Nolan Winter. Adding elite point guard Nick Boyd from the San Diego State Aztecs, Andrew Rohde from Virginia, Austin Rapp from Portland, and a few others. There's a good spattering of players to pick from as the most important player for Wisconsin.

Sleepers Media didn't go with NBA hopeful John Blackwell or star point guard Boyd. They chose big man Nolan Winter as the most important player for the Badgers going into this season, which is moderately surprising. And here's why:

Nolan Winter is due for a really big year this season for the Wisconsin Badgers

Related: Greg Gard announces an important promotion on his staff

Typically, Wisconsin is a bit slept on in the national narrative. Thus, the stars are what usually shine in the spotlight of what the pundits are talking about. Thus, picking Blackwell or Boyd would make a ton of sense. However, this site knows ball, and they know Wisconsin ball. The key big man for a Greg Gard offense and defense matters a ton.

Winter is a great choice for the most important player, and it's easy to agree as you think about how the offense will not only revolve around how he can stretch the floor but also how important he will be without Stephen Crowl.

Of course, Austin Rapp and maybe one of the other new big men, like freshman Will Garlock or returning depth piece Riccardo Greppi, will also help him out. But this is now going to be a Winter-led front court.

Winter ended the 2024-2025 season with 9.4, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.1 assists with an impressive 56.4% field goal rate and a scorchng 35.8% 3-point shooting. He's due for a big season this year as the featured front-court option for Greg Gard and the Wisconsin Badgers.