Coming into the 2021-22 season, the Badgers Men’s Basketball team had low expectations from basketball pundits all across the country. A disappointing 2020-21 campaign was capped off in the worst way imaginable, with an audio clip being released between former disgruntled senior players and head coach Greg Gard. Because of this, many people were uncertain where current players stood with Gard.
Additionally, Badgers lost five of their top eight-minute getters to either various professional leagues or to the transfer portal. Though it had only been two seasons since Gard had won Big Ten Coach of the Year, people were beginning to question his leadership and ability to coach and recruit for Wisconsin teams in the future.