Rising Badgers Underclassman Reveals Teams Tried to Poach Him This Offseason

Wisconsin basketball relied on a bevy of experienced guards in its backcourt last season, not leaving many minutes for the team's two true freshmen guards, Zach Kinziger and Hayden Jones.

The pair averaged 4.8 and 7.1 minutes per game, respectively. Jones, in particular, saw his fair share of action as a reserve off the bench and while he had his growing pains, namely in the turnover department, the 6-foot-6 guard with overseas experience displayed some flashes.

Even early in his career, it was clear his professional experience in New Zealand helped develop an offensive game that's polished ahead of schedule. Still, when all was said and done in 2026-27, Jones finished with a very modest stat line of 1.7 points and 1.0 rebounds, shooting 61.5 percent from the field.

Nonetheless, that was enough to catch the attention of several programs in the offseason that tried to lure him away from the Badgers. Appearing on Brian Butch's "Butchie's Den" podcast, Jones revealed that he had multiple offers to leave Wisconsin.

“There were schools that were interested, but I was pretty quick to say no. This is where I wanna be for the rest of my college career," he said on the podcast. “I was pretty certain I was gonna stay. I wanna be here for four, five years.”

Hayden Jones' 2026 outlook

Hayden Jones talks with associate head coach Joe Krabbenhoft. | Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Though Jones admitted that his freshman year was "a bit of a roller coaster," the guard looks to have a bright future. On Butch's podcast, he appeared enamored with the culture of Wisconsin basketball and fully bought into the Badgers' plans to develop him.

Again, the New Zealander has some legit offensive game. His excellent frame (6-foot-6) certainly helps, as he has the size to withstand some of the Big Ten's trademark physicality. That size also helped him shoot 66.7 percent at the rim and 60 percent in the paint, per CBB Analytics.

Even in his limited offensive opportunities as a freshman, Jones didn't settle for shots. Almost 90 percent of his shots came from inside the paint or at the rim, and that ability to pressure the rim is something Wisconsin is going to need more of in 2026-27 as it loses its two primary isolation scorers and downhill guards (Nick Boyd, John Blackwell).

In 2026-27, I'd expect Jones to be one of the primary guards off the bench for Wisconsin, along with his classmate Kinziger and incoming freshman and fellow New Zealander Jackson Ball. He told Butch that his main focus this offseason is ball-handling (which tracks given his turnover issues as a freshman) and shooting, which is of course critical for any guard — but with Wisconsin losing 40 points per game from two players alone, the Badgers need all the offensive firepower they can muster.

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