Daniel Freitag enters the portal: Will he consider hometown Gophers?

Freitag was a four-star recruit coming out of high school in the Twin Cities. Gophers were among his finalists before committing to Wisconsin.

Wisconsin guard Daniel Freitag (5) shoots over Detroit Mercy guard Nate Johnson (10) during the second half of their game Sunday, December 22, 2024 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin. Wisconsin beat Detroit Mercy 76-53. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When Daniel Freitag committed to the Badgers, he chose a future with Wisconsin over offers from his hometown Minnesota Gophers and a handful of other power conference programs.

But after a freshman season spending more time watching than playing, Freitag is entering the transfer portal and will be in search of a new home. Freitag's place as a seldom-played reserve wasn't because of a lack of talent. It was because Wisconsin had two of the top guards in the Big Ten in John Tonje and John Blackwell.

It's unclear if the former Bloomington Jefferson and Breck star will consider the Gophers under new head coach Niko Medved, but Gophers On SI's Tony Liebert is calling it a "realistic" possibility.

"Freitag is another Minnesota native in the portal. He struggled to find his footing in year one with Wisconsin, but he has plenty of talent. If the Gophers miss out on (Colorado State guard Kyan Evans), Freitag could be a realistic replacement," Liebert wrote.

The Gophers, Badgers, Notre Dame, Baylor and Virginia were Freitag's finalists when he committed to Wisconsin in June 2023.

As a recruit, Freitag was rated by 247Sport as a four-star prospect and the No. 128 player nationally in the class of 2024. He was the No. 2 recruit in Minnesota in 2024, trailing only Jackson McAndrew, who wound up playing a big role as a true freshman at Creighton.

The recruits from Minnesota who ranked behind Freitag in 2024 were Isaiah Johnson-Arigu (in the transfer portal after one season at Miami), Casmir Chavis (in the portal after one season at Arkansas) and Isaac Asuma (returning to Minnesota for his sophomore season).