Wisconsin point guard Chucky Hepburn enters transfer portal
MADISON, Wis. – University of Wisconsin senior guard Chucky Hepburn has entered the NCAA transfer portal, a source confirmed to BadgerBlitz.com, a stunning departure for the Badgers as they navigate what is becoming a busy offseason.
Appearing in 103 games for Wisconsin over the past three seasons, Hepburn was one of the key pieces to Wisconsin’s success. In addition to averaging 9.2 points and 3.9 assists per game, Hepburn averaged 2.1 steals per game and was named to the conference’s all-defensive team.
A message left for Hepburn has not been returned.
"We have a lot of love for Chucky," head coach Greg Gard said in a statement released to BadgerBlitz.com. "He's been a big part of our program. In today's college basketball, players are making transactional decisions all over the country at every level. There's no time to complain about the system in place.
"We're dedicating all of our energy right now into finding the next fits for our program. In fact, minutes after talking to Chucky about this, I was already pursuing another talented point guard who is in the portal.
"This is the reality of college basketball today."
The transfer portal has seen a lot of exits for the Badgers since their stunning first-round exit to James Madison more than a month ago. UW has had seven players enter the portal off last year’s roster, including leading-scorer A.J. Storr and 2023 Freshman All-Big Ten selection Connor Essegian.
It was reported earlier Thursday that Storr had committed to Kansas, while Essegian and others are still uncommitted. UW also has seen assistant coach Dean Oliver leave the program after his contract wasn't renewed and director of recruiting and scouting Kyle Blackbourn take the head coaching position at Rockhurst College.
Despite struggling with his shooting percentage, Hepburn’s junior year was one of his better statistical seasons. Willing to throttle back his scoring that has opened production for others while increasing his efficiency, Hepburn shot .429 percent overall (up from .377 in 22-23), .509 from two-point range (up from .357), averaging 3.9 assists (up from 2.8) with a 3.19 assist-to-turnover ratio (up from 1.9).
He played his best during Wisconsin’s run to the Big Ten Tournament championship, averaging 17.3 points per game on 69.0 percent shooting (20-for-29 FG), while responsible for 17 assists to three turnovers.
“He’s getting better as a player,” Gard said before the NCAA tournament. “How good he is in ball screens right now with pinching guys off, specifically in drop coverages. We’ve done more ball screens this year than maybe the last 20-some years combined because of how we’ve shifted things offensively. He’s gotten really good at it. You don’t see him taking those hoist shots at the end of shot clocks anymore. He’s inside the paint. He’s got a mid-range game, a little floater he’s working on, he’s more assertive.”
With Tyler Wahl having exhausted his eligibility, the Badgers are returning two starters in fifth-year senior guard Max Klesmit and five-year senior center Steven Crowl, as well as All-Big Ten Freshman selection John Blackwell.
Hepburn’s departure likely damages the Badgers’ opportunity to land former Nebraska-Omaha standout Frankie Fidler. A former high school teammate of Hepburn’s, Fidler averaged 20.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists to earn first-team All-Summit League honors.
Fidler was expected to announce his college decision on Monday but postponed it after spending the previous weekend at Michigan State. No new commitment date has been announced. The Badgers have yet to land any prospect from the portal.
The vacancy at point guard puts a bigger spotlight on incoming three-star point guard Daniel Freitag, who scored 33 points to lead his team to a Minnesota 2A championship last month. He is rated the No.132 prospect in his class by Rivals.com.
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