Nolan Winter ready to carry Wisconsin basketball’s frontcourt tradition forward

Nolan Winter is ready to take the next step for Wisconsin men's basketball as a leader and carry the Badgers’ frontcourt tradition forward.

Wisconsin Badgers forward Nolan Winter getting up shots at the Nicholas Johnson Pavilion. Photo courtesy of UW Athletics.

Two years ago, Nolan Winter was the one getting bullied in practice.

Every day, the freshman forward from Lakeville North High School found himself battling a fellow Minnesota native in Steven Crowl, who was stronger and far more experienced. Those lessons, while tough at the time, are among the reasons why Winter walked into Big Ten Media Days as one of the Wisconsin men’s basketball team’s player representatives.

No longer just a student of the game, Winter is now the teacher, ready to pass down the same lessons that once shaped him.

That sense of loyalty runs deep with Winter. He’s a product of the program in every sense — molded by its values and invested in its future. And really, who better to represent Wisconsin basketball than someone who’s lived everything it stands for since the day he arrived on campus?

That’s why staying in Madison mattered so much to him.

“It was huge for me to stay at Wisconsin,” Winter told Badgernotes. “For them to show the love and the confidence that they showed me from day one when I stepped on campus, I couldn’t really see myself anywhere else. With John Blackwell coming back and Jack Janicki, those are my brothers. I just wanted to be that Steven Crowl, for these younger guys, and really show them the ropes and what it means to be a Badger. With the city and the fans, it would have been super hard for me to say no.

“I’m thrilled that I’m back.”

That decision mattered. The Badgers lost a wave of veterans in John Tonje, Steven Crowl, Max Klesmit, Carter Gilmore, and Kamari McGee this offseason. Winter’s return gives Greg Gard’s roster a stabilizing presence at a spot that has become the connective tissue of Wisconsin’s offense.

Last season, Winter averaged 9.4 points and 5.8 rebounds on 56.4% shooting while hitting 35.8% from beyond the arc. His skill set is a perfect match for Wisconsin’s evolving European-style ball-screen system built around pace and spacing, and at this point, it’s clear how naturally he fits.

The growth of a modern big

Winter’s rise to being a focal point of the Badgers didn’t happen overnight.

As a freshman, Winter averaged just 2.4 points and 1.8 rebounds in 9.4 minutes per game across 36 appearances. But by his sophomore season, he started all 37 games, led the team in rebounding (5.8 per game), and also topped the Big Ten in 2-point percentage (71.5%). His sophomore leap included a few notable moments: 15 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field in his first collegiate start, a career-high 20-point performance against Butler, not to mention a 17-rebound game versus Michigan State.

Winter’s efficiency isn’t anecdotal. The numbers confirm it. According to Synergy, despite not having a ton of volume, Winter ranked among the nation’s most efficient big men, finishing in the 99th percentile nationally on post-ups, 91st on putbacks, 93rd on cuts, 76th as a spot-up shooter, 99th in transition finishing, and 53rd when operating out of short rolls.

Those numbers reflect both his talent and the role he was asked to play as a sophomore. Playing behind a veteran core last season, Winter wasn’t asked to carry a heavy offensive load, but he just made the most of every touch. He took smart shots, played within the system, and proved how efficient he can be when the game comes to him. While nobody expects him to replicate those percentile marks in a featured role, his growth in the weight room and added strength around the rim should help offset that.

The competitive edge has always been there for Winter, and now, with the added muscle and more responsibility at the five, the tools are there for him to expand his impact in ways he couldn’t a season ago.

He doesn’t waste possessions. He moves with purpose, creates angles with his feet, and plays within the rhythm of the offense. Even in an era obsessed with versatility and being positionless, Winter’s greatest strength is that he understands who he is, a floor-stretching big man who thrives on positioning and taking what comes to him. Winter’s ability to stretch the floor as a legitimate 3-point threat, combined with having enough athleticism to beat a defender off the dribble when they extend too far, makes him a unique fit for what Wisconsin’s offense is built to do.

Where his game still has room to grow is on the perimeter. When asked to create off the dribble or handle in pick-and-rolls, his Synergy numbers dip to the 15th percentile nationally as a handler and below-average in off-screen actions. But that’s more nitpicking than criticism. Winter’s role is to be a stretch big, a finisher, not a creator, yet he’s athletic and skilled enough to expand that part of his game eventually. In an offense built on space and movement, that could become one of his next areas of growth.

The frontcourt lineage lives on

Winter takes a lot of pride in taking on that mentor role Crowl once held.

The same physical battles that once humbled Winter have become the lessons he’s now passing down to freshmen like Will Garlock and Aleksas Bieliauskas, as well as sophomores Austin Rapp and Riccardo Greppi.

There’s a lineage in Wisconsin’s frontcourt that’s as much about mentorship as it is about production. It’s a steady passing of the torch that stretches back decades, from Mike Wilkinson to Brian Butch, from Butch to Jon Leuer, from Leuer to Jared Berggren, from Berggren to Frank Kaminsky, from Kaminsky to Ethan Happ, from Happ to Nate Reuvers and Micah Potter, from them to Steven Crowl, and now to Nolan Winter.

Each generation learned from the one before it. The footwork, the positioning, the patience, the understanding that being a Wisconsin big means more than posting up and rebounding. It’s a brotherhood. It’s about accountability, toughness, and carrying a standard. That standard now belongs to Winter, who spent the last year learning under Crowl and is poised to take his place in a lineage built on continuity and leadership.

“Steven taught me so much,” Winter told Badgernotes. “He wasn’t a big talker. Kind of a big, quiet guy, but by example, he showed me a lot. He’d come at me a lot in practice, and he’d make me better. He really made me who I am today, through the physicality and everything he did.

“So for me to be able to go at some of these younger guys and teach them the things that Steven taught me, it’s the least I can do knowing that Steve will be proud of me. With Will Garlock, Aleksas Bieliauskas, and whoever it is, being able to go at them, and be the Steven Crowl for them that he was to me. It’s big for me, and I want to be able to carry that on.”

That’s the part fans don’t see. Winter, who once took his lumps in practice against an experienced mentor, is now helping shape the next wave. It’s the through-line of Gard’s philosophy: develop your own, retain your core, and pass it down. That’s what’s kept Wisconsin’s frontcourt so reliable.

Nolan Winter’s physical leap

Physical growth has been a major theme of Winter’s offseason, both in the literal and symbolic sense.

Winter has added muscle under the guidance of strength coach Jim Schneider, focusing on building a base that enables him to absorb contact more effectively and finish through it. Gard noted that his 7-footer now weighs around 250 pounds, a testament to how far he’s come physically.

That work in the weight room has been paired with an increased emphasis on nutrition and maintaining a good weight throughout the season, as well as fueling his body to play stronger for longer periods of time. It’s the kind of maturation that shows up in how Winter carries himself on the floor.

“It adds the ability to be consistently dominant,” Gard said of Winter’s added weight. “You can’t go into a sledgehammer fight with a tack hammer. He’s been able to add good weight, and I’ve noticed him being much more dominant and willing to initiate contact around the rim.

“The key is continuing to add the good weight and then holding the good weight because sometimes the season, specifically with bigger guys, it can drain the tank. So, it’s important for him from a diet, nutrition, hydration, and rest standpoint, that he understands and grasps the big picture of this, the long haul, and does the things that can help his body.”

That strength will matter most on the defensive end. Asked about replacing Crowl’s role on that side of the floor, Winter didn’t dodge it.

“I understand my role there will probably be a little bigger,” Winter said of the defensive end. “This offseason was huge for me in the weight room, really being able to put some muscle on and be able to hold my own down there. I think I’ve done a good job with that, and I like where I’m at. I’m looking forward to stepping into that and holding my own down there.”

The Synergy data suggests there’s reason to feel confident Winter can hold his own. He already defends the post at a reasonably high level (85th percentile), a reflection of his positioning and body control. The challenge now is improving when pulled away from the rim. His isolation (13th percentile) and transition (14th percentile) numbers indicate where Winter still has room to grow. But in a system that protects bigs through structure and communication, that development curve looks manageable, especially if some of Wisconsin’s younger frontcourt players can give the team some quality minutes off the bench to help keep Winter fresh.

Carrying the torch forward

Offensively, Winter’s game now mirrors the evolution of Wisconsin basketball itself: a mix of old-school discipline and modern spacing.

He can trail in transition, pick-and-pop from the top of the key, or back down smaller defenders when the tempo slows. His ability to switch between those modes gives Gard flexibility to play faster without losing identity. Winter’s comments reflected a player embracing that balance.

“I think this team’s got a lot of potential,” Winter said. “With the transfers that we brought in, they’re super talented, and with the returners that we have in me and John Blackwell, Jack Janicki, and even Riccardo Greppi, and all those guys. I think we’re going to be a very fun team to watch.

“Last year, we scored a lot of points, and I think this year we have the potential to score even more. We’re going to be a super fast-paced team. We want to make as deep a run as we can. I think it’ll be a fun season.”

Winter also spoke warmly about the impact that Kirk Penney made and the new energy Brad Davison brings to the program.

“We’re gonna miss Kirk,” Winter said. “He was a genius when it came to basketball. Getting to know him and his family, he was a really good dude, and we’re going to miss him a lot. But bringing in Brad Davison, we’ve got this youth running around the practice. I don’t want to say he’s crazy, but he’s got some energy to him, which is good for us as players. And he’ll go against the guards, battle them one-on-one, so it’s good for the guards and makes them better. When it comes to KP, we’re going to miss him, but we’ll still stay in touch, and he’ll help us out when things get rough.”

That mix of continuity and change defines Wisconsin basketball right now. And in the middle of it all is Winter, who represents both.

Winter isn’t trying to be Steven Crowl. He’s trying to extend the lineage, become a focal point, and be the connective piece between eras, the one who keeps Wisconsin’s identity intact as everything around it changes.

The Big Ten will test that evolution soon enough. But hearing him talk, you get the sense Winter knows what kind of foundation he’s standing on.

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