Opportunity, Not NIL, Pushed Camren Hunter to Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. – Camren Hunter isn’t naïve to see how college basketball is changing into a for-profit business for players.

In today’s world of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) and pay-for-play requests sending college basketball into a bidding war, the former Central Arkansas point guard has seen some of the dollar figures being thrown around, like former UW starters A.J. Storr and Chucky Hepburn leaving the school for deals reportedly in the high six figures.

Hunter is certainly not against earning a couple extra dollars, but he was emphatic in saying that wasn’t the reason he entered the transfer portal last month. Coming off a lost season due to injury and a coaching change, Hunter wanted to find a school where he could thrive and prove himself.

It was a perfect match with Wisconsin.

“I know it’s part of the game and how it is now, but I was raised different,” Hunter told BadgerBlitz.com after he announced Sunday he would transfer into the Badgers program. “I’m there for the opportunity and to reach goals that I have set for myself. I’m not into chasing money and figuring out how much (my play) is going to get me.

“(The money) had no effect on my part of the decision. It was solely based on the opportunity that they had.”

One wouldn’t think the market was high for a player who missed last season with a foot injury, but the 6-3 Hunter had plenty of suitors based on his first two collegiate seasons. With 60 games of collegiate starting experience, Hunter heard from over 60 schools and got strong overtures from Saint Louis (visited before UW), Auburn, and Florida State.

There was something different about the Badgers though. He arrived in Wisconsin late Thursday night and he and his stepfather were greeted at the airport by assistant coach Sharif Chambliss and promptly went on a campus visit. Hunter’s conversations with head coach Greg Gard were genuine in their conversations and during film study.

Wisconsin was desperately searching for an experienced point guard after Hepburn left after three seasons as a starter in search of a large NIL deal a week before. The Badgers didn’t promise him the job (although odds are it’s his to lose) but told him he’ll have every opportunity to compete. By the time the visit was done, Hunter was ready to sign.

“Playing time certainly affected my decision but a big part was Coach Gard,” Hunter said. “Based on my opinion, he has a great resume at the University of Wisconsin. The fact that he gave me a call and told me he believed in me, that was one of a kind.

“It was very apparent that they needed a point guard because Chucky left, but they didn’t want me to change who I was. They said Chucky was a good player and I’m going to be compared to him, but they want me to be me at the end of the day. I want to drive the boat and get us where we need to be. I couldn’t pass up on that opportunity.”

It’ll be hard for Hunter to escape the Hepburn comparison, largely because they play a similar style.

Starting all 60 games he appeared in, Hunted was a two-time Atlantic Sun Conference selection and averaged a team-high 16.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.5 steals per game in 2022-23. He was the conference’s freshman of the year and a first-team all-conference pick after averaging 14.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. Hunter was named Atlantic Sun Conference Freshman of the Year and earned first-team all-conference honors.

Hepburn started 68 games during his first two seasons, averaging 10.1 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists. He was named to the Big Ten’s All-Defensive Team this past season.

“I’m a competitor,” said Hunter, who has two years of eligibility remaining. “I’m very physical. I can take a bump and finish through contact. I can score at all three levels, and you have to do that in the Big Ten because you can’t always get to the rim. I can shoot a mid-range, floater, whatever I need to do. I’m really good at creating for myself and others. I’m good at being versatile on defense with quick hands, can chase guys down, and guard multiple positions with the one through the four.”

The main difference between the two will come down to dollars, especially since Hepburn could reportedly earn up to $750,000 as he tries to resurrect Louisville.

A native of Bryant, Arkansas, Hunter had only scholarship offers from Central Arkansas and Oral Roberts out of high school. He had several more last offseason when he entered the portal and committed to Butler but issues with NIL and a personal family matter made him return to school.

During a closed preseason scrimmage, Hunter broke his left foot as he stepped wrong while passing out of a double team. He was medically cleared by January but sat out the remainder of the season in part because his father passed away around Christmas.

The Bears finished 9-23 and head coach Anthony Boone was fired in early March. Less than a week later, Hunter was back in the portal.

“Everything is based on circumstances that happened at Central Arkansas,” Hunter said. “The coach got fired party because they had a down year. I couldn’t help a lot. He probably would still be in place if I didn’t get hurt. Basically, I was looking for new opportunities and a new situation, a chance to prove myself to be an athlete and help my team win. I wasn’t concerned whether it was a big school or not. I was going to go wherever God led me. Through a lot of prayer, He led me to the University of Wisconsin.”

Hunter didn’t divulge what The Varsity Collective, Wisconsin’s NIL Branch, is giving him for joining the Badgers program because he doesn’t know. Shortly after NIL became big business, Hunter hired representatives following his sophomore season and has let them work out all the parameters. He said conversations between him and the Wisconsin about NIL never happened by his choosing.

“I’ve never talked NIL with any coach about NIL to be honest,” Hunter said. “I don’t want to talk about that. It’s not my focus … I trust my representation to take care of it. They told me it was pretty straightforward with Wisconsin.”

Losing eight players off last season’s roster (seven via the portal) opened five scholarships for the Badgers. With UW bringing in freshman guard Daniel Freitag and freshman forward Jack Robison, the staff has at least two scholarships for portal prospects, like targeting help in the frontcourt and another guard.

“You talk about going away from home, it’s something my mom was big on when I told her I was going away from home,” Hunter said. “Based off circumstances that happened in my personal life this year, I wanted a fresh start elsewhere. She said it had to feel like home with the coaching staff. Coach Gard has been in the program coaching for two decades, Coach Sharif and Coach (Joe) Krabbenhoft played there, so you know that Wisconsin Basketball means something to them.”

“They gave me the rundown and everything, but ultimately they said they are here to help me get back on track in life, show people you can do it here, and treat you like family.”

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