The Wisconsin Basketball season is right around the corner, so I’m taking a look at every scholarship player on the roster. Here are the links for the first nine.
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Bronson Koenig
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Zak Showalter
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Nigel Hayes
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Vitto Brown
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Ethan Happ
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Khalil Iverson
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Jordan Hill
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Alex Illikainen
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D’Mitrik Trice
Now, sophomore bruiser Charlie Thomas.
2015-16 Season Recap
It was a tale of two seasons for freshman forward Charlie Thomas. When he arrived at Madison, he was penciled into the rotation immediately do to his size (6 foot 8, 253 pounds) and physicality. He had the body to bang with Big Ten big men right away. Under Bo Ryan, Thomas was consistently one of the first two (and sometimes only two) players off the bench.
Thomas was a phenomenal rebounder and played tough, physical post defense. However, he struggled mightily on the offense end. He only averaged 2.4 points, and was very inefficient. He shot 37% from the field, 27% from 3-point range, and 47% from the line. For that reason, when Greg Gard took over as head coach, he saw his playing time drastically decrease.
Burning Questions
1. Can he improve his shooting?
Thomas is someone Wisconsin needs on the court. He is strong, tough, physical, and a good athlete. He is also a stellar rebounder. But none of that will matter if he can’t improve his shooting. He needs to be a threat to score, or defenses will be able to focus on Wisconsin’s other players, hurting the spacing and flow of the offense.
If Thomas is able to add a consistent mid-range jump shot or become a solid post presence, he will see a lot of playing time. If he continues to be an offensive liability, he will see limited action, and may even be overtaken by fellow sophomore Andy Van Vliet on the depth chart.
Season Outlook
Even though Thomas won’t suddenly become a prolific scorer, his shooting will likely improve just enough to keep him on the court. Even if it doesn’t, he is still one of the best rebounders and post defenders Wisconsin has. He will certainly be useful against bigger, more athletic teams. He will also be valuable if Ethan Happ finds himself in foul trouble. Thomas would be much more effective at replacing Happ’s rebounding than either Van Vliet or Alex Illikainen.
Stat Prediction
10 minutes, 2.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 40% FG, 30% 3, 50% FT
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