Three takeaways about Nolan Winter decision to return to the Wisconsin Badgers

MADISON, Wis. - Nolan Winter made it clear to his representation what he desired for his final season of college basketball. He didn't want to change addresses.

That was the message he conveyed several times in a conference call with reporters on Monday, his first official interview since announcing he's returning for his senior season in 2026-27 and becoming next season's face of Badgers basketball.

"My agents know that I want to be a Badger, and this is where I want to be," Winter said. "From day one, since I met them going into last year and this year, I said I want to be a Badger and do anything you can to make sure that's possible."

pic.twitter.com/yjhQDU6SRh
— Nolan Winter (@NolanWinter5) April 22, 2026

Winter was one of six players announced by Wisconsin as returning from the 2025-26 season, joining juniors Jack Janicki and Austin Rapp, and sophomores Will Garlock, Hayden Jones, and Zach Kinziger.

It's created another busy offseason for the Wisconsin staff, as they rebuild the roster with a combination of experienced seniors, international freshmen, and high school recruits.

In the transfer portal era, however, the Badgers proved that sometimes the best moves are to retain instead of adding.

Here are three takeaways from Winter's conversation with reporters.

He left money on the table

Conversations with Winter (and others) returning to the Badgers in 2026-27 started well before the transfer portal window opened in April, but Winter said he began the process of sitting down with his parents, the UW coaches, and his agents the day after the season to get, "a feel for everything, where I can best see myself succeed, and have the best opportunity to get the next level."

Those talks started a process that led Winter to choose to remain with the program because "it's where he was happiest."

"I love it here. I love the relationships I built with everyone, my teammates, and we got a good group of guys coming in, so we're going to be fun to watch next year."

Winter went through the retention process without an agency last season, which caused him more than a few headaches despite having clear intentions of his end goal. To alleviate that stress, he signed Priority Sports, an agency with 35+ years of experience in professional and collegiate basketball and football and allowed them to handle all the outside factors.

According to Winter, his agency received calls from other teams inquiring about his availability and made financial offers. He admitted it was hard to deal with the noise of what other teams were willing to offer, but said his agency made the process "super easy" for him because wanting to stay with the program was the clear objective.

"They laid out all the options I had and what I could do. Like I told them, this is where I wanted to be."
Winter declined to say how much money he left on the table by not entering the portal, only saying that "being a Badger has meant everything to me, and what they've offered me after three years is more than anything I could have asked for."

Winter helped build the roster

Winter called it a special responsibility to be the player everyone will look at to set the example and show newcomers "the Wisconsin way" the program does things.

It's part of the reason Winter had "pretty consistent communications" with the coaching staff about the players they were targeting, even participating in recruiting some of the players. Winter's behind-the-scenes viewpoint allowed him to follow the process as UW slowly added pieces around him.

He hasn't watched a ton of tape on the guards UW has added, especially the projected contributors like 22-year-old point guard in Australian pro Owen Foxwell, Miami (OH) wing Eian Elmer, and George Washington guard Trey Autry, but he had glowing remarks about Hofstra transfer Victory Onuetu, saying it'll be "a blast" to play with his size and athleticism.

#Badgers 7-footer Nolan Winter on the impact of having rim-protecting 5s to play with next season: "I've learned to guard the 5 over these last two years. But I think guarding the 4 is just something I'm more natural with. And something I enjoy doing more." pic.twitter.com/CuAs7S7edv
— Michael McCleary (@MikeJMcCleary) April 27, 2026

UW hasn't had a true rim protector for several seasons, a reason why UW is excited and encouraged about Garlock's development, but the 6-11, 250-pound Onuetu has shown he can deliver decent numbers after leading his team with 6.9 rebounds and ranking second with 36 blocks.

After Wisconsin ranked 56th in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency, the program's worst since the 2018-19 season, it was clear the Badgers needed to improve in that area. The offseason development of Garlock and Onuetu could allow Winter to slide to the four, a spot where he has thrived in the past.

"I think they're all going to fit," Winter said of the incoming group. "They're all going to bring something that we need."

Winter saw his best NBA path with Wisconsin

John Blackwell annoyed some Wisconsin fans after his commitment to Duke, saying he felt he had reached his developmental ceiling with the Badgers. He told Field of 68 that he felt he was "naturally a point guard" and "wanted to be more on the ball." UW used Blackwell at point guard after Chucky Hepburn bolted for a better NIL deal at Louisville and saw decent results in the 2024-25 season, but the Badgers felt they could significantly upgrade the position by adding an experienced player like Nick Boyd and moving Blackwell to an off-ball role.

Both players significantly benefited, although behind-the-scenes rumblings were that Blackwell was unhappy with that line of thinking.

Although Blackwell's news wasn't entirely surprising, the Badgers seeing freshman forward Aleksas Bieliauskas bolt was unexpected. Bieliauskas looked more comfortable in his role as the season progressed and looked like an heir apparent to Winter but took a better payday at South Carolina playing for former UW assistant coach Lamont Paris.

Winter was complimentary of Blackwell, the relationship the two built after coming in the same recruiting class, and had nothing bad to say about his choice, only that Blackwell had to do what was best for him. He was not asked about nor mentioned Bieliauskas.

Winter is coming off his best college season and one of the best for a Big Ten frontcourt player, averaging 13.1 points and 8.5 rebounds on 56.9 percent shooting in 31 starts.

He finished the season with 12 double-doubles, the third-most by a UW player since the 2000-01 season, and a 133.4 offensive rating, per KenPom, ranked 20th in the country.

Winter shot 70.1 percent on two-point field goals last season, making him the first qualifying Big Ten player since the 1986-87 season to shoot at least 70 percent inside the arc. This came from a player who averaged 2.4 points per game as a freshman to 9.6 as a sophomore.

While the Badgers haven't produced a frontcourt player who has had an NBA career since Frank Kaminsky over a decade ago, Winter saw the progression of his development and didn't want to disrupt what he felt was the right path to a professional career, especially considering his already strong relationships with the coaching and support staff.

He also embraced the opportunity to start and end his college career without having to rent a U-Haul.
"To be here for four years is pretty special in today's day and age," Winter said. "To be able to say you're one of the few players now in the nation to be at a school for four years and continuing to develop ... I truly didn't want to leave here."

Add us as a preferred source on Google