Wisconsin hoops GM gives an intriguing Braeden Carrington update and timeline

The Wisconsin Badgers haven't been shy about the reality that they want to have a full roster of 15 players. The team currently sits at 14. Greg Gard has spoken openly about adding one more before the fall: "It will probably be a big man." Now Marc VandeWettering, the Wisconsin general manager, is also talking about it. He even put a timestamp on it: "as soon as possible." VandeWettering is big on making sure the player arrives before fall.

This is a new wrinkle in Braeden Carrington's desire to return for another season. Carrington is part of a lawsuit with other college athletes asking for a fifth year of eligibility; more on this in a minute. For now, VandeWettering says that they are monitoring the Carrington process and "we will be ready to adapt whatever the rules are once those things get finalized." This is intriguing and maybe even borderline promising.

VandeWettering is basically saying that they have a plan in place for Carrington if he's approved or denied. That's a bigger story than maybe many people realize. The real negative side of the coin for Carrington is the timeline.

Braeden Carrington is hoping for a fifth year and one more chance to be a Wisconsin Badger

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Carrington jumped into a lawsuit that is asking for all the current four-year players to be given a fifth year. This is now a rule in college sports. It's often called the "5-in-5" rule, which gives every NCAA athlete five years after turning 19. However, that rule doesn't apply to recent graduates; it only starts next season. Carrington and others want it to take place immediately and get an extra year of eligibility.

If Carrington were to get that granted, he is fully expecting to be on the Wisconsin roster. He's still around the program, practicing, and in the building. The timeline may end up being the problem. Who knows how long it will take for this lawsuit to get worked out, and if it doesn't get worked out shortly, Wisconsin will have a 15th player not named Carrington.

That's the real "rubber meets the road" moment. VandeWettering seems to indicate there is a plan for all options that are out there. Even the timeline-constraint ones. Is there a scenario in which Carrington and another player are added if the lawsuit becomes "good news?" That would require some weird strings to be pulled, but maybe?

Either way, the news for Badger fans is that Carrington is an option for the 15th player, and Wisconsin is monitoring the situation, but ultimately the Badgers may move on as Carrington chases a lawsuit. This is the news in a nutshell. It's intriguing, but there's still a lot to be figured out. Add in the fact that Gard seems to want a big man to be the final player, and it adds even another level to it all. The next few weeks will be telling.

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