The University of Wisconsin men’s basketball program was one of six (BYU UVA, Marquette, Purdue, UNC, Stanford) Power 5 programs that hadn’t added a player from the transfer portal. That changed with the commitment from University of Central Arkansas guard Camren Hunter Sunday.
UW was quick to act on the third-year guard, pulling him onto campus for an official visit merely days after reaching out and earning his commitment to beat out Saint Louis, Butler — which he briefly intended to play for as a transfer last offseason — Florida State and West Virginia.
Hunter is the first of what’s likely to be many incoming transfers for a Badgers team with plenty of holes to fill.
Standing at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, Hunter boasts a large frame that Wisconsin didn’t have in the backcourt last season. He spent his first two seasons at Central Arkansas, earning Atlantic Sun Conference Freshman of the Year honors in 2021-22 and making the All-ASUN Third Team in 2022-23 on 16.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
But, Hunter hasn’t taken the floor since his All-Conference campaign — sitting out after breaking his foot prior to the start of the season. He has two years of eligibility left.
Hunter is a logical addition in the wake of Chucky Hepburn’s departure — joining AJ Storr, Connor Essegian and Gus Yalden as scholarship players who have left the program this offseason — as a player who can defend at a high level, play make and score.
Hunter took a massive step forward as a shooter in 2022-23, jumping up to 31.1% (5.4 attempts per game) from 25% on deep balls and was especially impressive in catch-and-shoot scenarios.
Ideally, the lefty could fill both guard positions, with the ability to orchestrate and facilitate within head coach Greg Gard’s offense and slide to an off-ball role when Kamari McGee or Daniel Freitag are on the floor. Hunter’s versatility expands past position — possessing a true three-level scoring capability, including a decent post-up game, where he can take advantage of smaller defenders.
Though he’s naturally a one — where he’ll likely see plenty of action in 2024-25 — Hunter’s ability to play multiple positions is massive considering the Badgers’ backcourt depth.
Hunter is a bit unorthodox with the ball in his hand, utilizing quick changes of pace and a herky jerky rhythm to get by defenders and to the rim. He’s a strong finisher through contact and looks to push the pace in transition, something UW did more of last season.
He’ll likely need to improve finishing with his off-hand and though it’s unclear how he’ll take to Big Ten basketball, Hunter’s all-around game fits what Gard wants to do on both ends of the floor and should be enough to have a legitimate chance at the Badgers starting point guard role in the fall.
