Wisconsin basketball freshman guard considering a redshirt for the 2025–26 season
Wisconsin guard Zach Kinziger is contemplating a redshirt season. Why he’s considering it, what the staff thinks, and what it means for the future.
In an era where college players bounce in and out of programs with the freedom of a revolving door, Wisconsin men’s basketball suddenly finds itself in a throwback situation: a highly touted in-state freshman walking into Greg Gard’s office and asking about taking a redshirt season.
Not being pushed toward one, but asking for one.
That’s where things stand with Zach Kinziger, the composite four-star shooting guard from De Pere who arrived in Madison with the résumé, shooting profile, and competitive wiring to eventually become a building block piece of Wisconsin’s future backcourt. But he also arrived on a roster with established guards stacked in front of him, and he knows it.
Gard shared that the exchange started with Kinziger initiating the discussion and being honest about where he is and where he wants to go.
He wants to graduate from the University of Wisconsin. He wants to make an impact. He also understands that John Blackwell, Nick Boyd, Jack Janicki, and Braeden Carrington are all older, more experienced, and physically ahead in the developmental curve, which is blocking his runway to playing time.
That kind of self-awareness isn’t something Gard takes lightly.
“Zach came to me, and we talked about it,” Gard said about the possibility of Kinziger redshirting. “He’s contemplating it. He wants to get his degree from Wisconsin. He wants to contribute at a high level, but he knows that he’s got guys in front of him that, quite frankly, are older and more experienced, so they have a head start. But he is still contemplating.
“We’ve talked about it. I’m not going to go into detail on the exacts, but we talked about ‘what do I need to get better at, what can I do to make sure I’m an integral part of this in the future, and he [Kinziger] will be.”
The message from his coaching staff was simple: if that’s the route he chooses, Wisconsin will support him all the way.
“I think giving young men that opportunity [to redshirt], even though we’re in a changing landscape, it’s made us who we are,” Gard said.
“We’ve had a lot of really, really good players redshirt, and of course, you’re going to be better at 23 than you are at 18. The fact that he said ‘coach, I want to get my degree from here. I’m not leaving; I just need to get better, and I need that experience. I think the other thing — being an in-state kid and understanding who we are and who we have been, he’s in here, he’s in this for the long haul. He’s a committed Badger.”
And frankly, the timing makes sense. The Badgers are off to a 2–0 start behind a pair of guards who are lighting up box scores to open the season. That’s not an easy duo to crack for minutes, especially when Boyd’s ability to hit fifth gear is quickly becoming the blueprint for the tempo that Wisconsin basketball wants to play with under Gard.
Associate head coach Joe Krabbenhoft hinted at this before the season even tipped. For Kinziger, this year is less about stepping aside and more about plotting his future in the program with intention. And the Badgers know they may have something special on their hands if he stays patient.
“Zach, the pedigree he comes from, is a really mature player that is going to have an opportunity to be a guy, a year or two from now, that we’re talking about as a key piece to this program’s success,” Krabbenhoft said.
Redshirting Doesn’t Diminish the Ceiling
People forget how good Kinziger already is.
Coming out of high school, Kinziger wasn’t just another in-state guard who could shoot from deep. He was one of the best shooters in the country, full stop. He hit 42% from beyond the arc as a junior, put up nearly 20 points per game, and anchored the De Pere Redbirds program.
Then he took it up a notch again as a senior. Kinziger became a 2024–25 Wisconsin Mr. Basketball finalist, earned WBCA First-Team honors, won Fox River Classic Conference Player of the Year, and averaged 24.2 points and 4.7 rebounds after starring on the Nike EYBL circuit with Team Herro.
He finished ranked No. 108 nationally in the 2025 class, the No. 17 shooting guard, and the No. 4 player in Wisconsin, according to the industry-generated composite, which is the type of résumé that tells you exactly why the staff believes he can be an impact player.
When Wisconsin evaluated him, they saw the same things everyone else did: a coach’s kid with elite shooting touch, natural feel, instincts beyond his age, and a competitive streak that fits the program’s DNA.
He wasn’t a guy you take out of obligation. Because in today’s landscape, you don’t take anyone out of obligation. Roster spots are far too precious for that. Kinziger was a blue-chip, in-state guard wired exactly the way Wisconsin wants, and they targeted him because he checked every box they value.
And that’s why this potential redshirt doesn’t read like a step back. It reads like a setup. The Badgers haven’t redshirted many freshmen under Gard in recent years. That said, the calculus changes when you’re talking about a player who isn’t far off physically, is the best shooter on the team, is fully invested in the long game and being a Badger, and happens to be learning behind two of the best upperclassmen guards in the conference.
Gard made it clear that the decision to redshirt Kinziger isn’t finalized, and won’t be unless the 6-foot-3 guard goes the entire year without appearing in a game — but the staff sees the upside in giving him space to develop.
In the modern era of college basketball, a redshirt year is often the first step toward preserving eligibility and testing the portal. That’s the norm now, but that’s not what’s happening here. Gard and Kinziger aren’t rushing to declare anything official, because one injury at guard could still pull him into the rotation.
“I think his future can be very impactful here,” Gard said. “He’s just got really good guards in Blackwell and Boyd that he can learn from. Your best teacher and best experience for this year has been being eyed up, nose to nose with Nick Boyd every day. That’s going to help him more than anything and more than he realizes right now.
“Younger players see everything under a microscope, not in a telescope. So that day-to-day hand-to-hand combat with Nick will really, really help him.”
That’s the hidden upside here. A year spent battling Boyd every practice is going to accelerate Kinziger’s development far more than scattered minutes ever could, and offer a slow-burn growth that pays off in year two and year three, when Wisconsin expects him to make a real jump.
Boyd plays with pace, physicality, and a level of confidence that doesn’t come easily to young guards. Learning how to match that intensity every day is the fastest way for Kinziger to build the defensive strength and speed, and to play at the offensive pace that this system demands.
Once those pieces round out, the rest of his game has a chance to pop in a real way, because anyone who watched Wisconsin’s open practices saw just how lethal he can be when he gets rolling. There’s legitimate microwave scoring ability there, with range that stretches well beyond the arc.
What It Means for Wisconsin
If Kinziger ultimately takes the redshirt, Wisconsin gains something programs rarely secure anymore: a multi-year guard who is physically ready, mentally bought in, and fully immersed in the system before ever being asked to shoulder real minutes. It provides the staff with long-term stability that has become nearly impossible to secure in the portal era.
And for Kinziger, it provides exactly what he came to Madison for: a development path built on intentional growth, not rushed opportunity. A chance to stack functional strength and improve his game without the pressure of fighting for scraps behind a strong group of upperclassmen. A chance to step into a major role when he’s actually ready to thrive in it.
It’s a decision rooted in patience, fit, and long-view thinking, which are three things that are becoming scarce in modern college basketball. If this redshirt happens, it won’t be a footnote. It’ll be the kind of quiet move that ends up reshaping Wisconsin’s backcourt rotation in the future.
The Badgers’ coaching staff sees real potential here. If everything comes together, Kinziger projects as a cornerstone piece — a core guard who can help set the culture for the next wave of Badgers and someone who wholeheartedly values what it means to wear the cardinal and white.
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Intelligent, talented, forward-thinking young man. Knowing he will be prepared for the competition will make him twice as lethal on the court. Commitment has become a rare all-around commodity. We are fortunate to be his choice. Positive stuff!
What a refreshing story in these times.