Badgers GM Marc VandeWettering Explains Wisconsin's Approach in Transfer Portal

The Badgers' offseason isn't quite wrapped up — they still have one more spot to fill on the 2026-27 roster.

Still, the meat of Wisconsin's squad appears to be in place between a starting five that's potentially already nailed down and a myriad of incoming freshmen.

It was an immensely busy offseason for head coach Greg Gard and his front office staff once again, as the Badgers filled six spots since their season came to a heartbreaking early ending in March Madness.

The offseason seems to get busier each and every year, which is part of the reason Wisconsin needed to promote basketball chief of staff Marc VandeWettering to a newly created general manager role, a title he's held from the 2025-26 season onwards.

So far this offseason, the Badgers have signed three transfer portal prospects, two international players and a high school senior. It was an extremely tactical, well-rounded approach, something VandeWetterning confirmed on Brian Butch's podcast.

Wisconsin makes its bigs a priority

Wisconsin Badgers forward Nolan Winter. | Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images

“Last year, we went heavy making sure we have two really good guards, and that worked really well for us," he said. "Obviously this year, keeping the frontcourt, we could kinda see how the market was gonna go, frontcourt pieces were gonna cost a lot. Retaining those and retaining those early was a priority.”

No one can (at least publicly) put an exact figure on a program's budget or individual player compensation these days, but VandeWettering's comments confirm the general consensus this offseason: big men cost more money.

The Badgers clearly acted in turn, building their 2026-27 roster from the frontcourt out. It certainly helps that they had two talented forwards (Nolan Winter and Austin Rapp) who actively wanted to return to Wisconsin as well. But market forces are increasingly shaping how programs can and will build their rosters in the offseason — Wisconsin very much lucked out having two bigs who would be considered elite portal prospects that ultimately wanted to run it back.

Financial concerns for the Badgers?

Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell left Madison for Duke this offseason. | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

There's a narrative that the Badgers are broke, and certainly, they fall behind many of the premier teams in the Big Ten. But money isn't the biggest object for Wisconsin. Oftentimes, it's how to spend that money efficiently.

“There’s nobody out there in the market that, whatever price they got, we couldn’t have paid," VandeWettering said. "But is it the best strategy for us to go throw our money at one guy?”

It certainly isn't. This comment appeared slightly geared towards easing the financial concerns of Badger fans, and it is reassuring to hear their general manager say point blank there's no one they can't afford.

Still, that's not entirely the case. If meeting a player at their price point would've severley handicapped Wisconsin's ability to pay the rest of its roster, I wouldn't say that means they can afford him. "Could've paid" and "Can afford" are two vastly different things.

Nonetheless, VandeWettering has done a remarkable job constructing what looks to be a roster that can hold its own in the Big Ten though times of immense change and roster turnover. He says that Wisconsin's fast-paced, high-volume three point offense has expanded the roster building capabilities.

“The beauty of the way we’re running offense now is there’s a lot of interchanging between positions, it’s not as rigid one through five," he said. "You want a true point, you want some wings, you want your frontcourt pieces. We could play two fours next to each other, or we could play small ball — for example, Jack Janicki ran the four last year.”

Wisconsin basketball continues to adpot with the times a lot quicker than its peers on the gridiron. VandeWettering is at the center of it all, and he's put together — on paper — a very solid squad for next season.

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