How much Wisconsin men's basketball must spend in the transfer portal
The Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team will try to be active in the transfer portal, but bringing top players to Madison isn't going to be easy.
NIL has forever changed the landscape of college athletics. The Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball program will try to be active in the transfer portal, but bringing top players to Madison isn't going to be easy. In a new report from On3's Pete Nakos , numerous teams are "gearing up to spend $10M+" in the transfer portal.
Rivals' Joe Tipton chimed in , writing that "a Big Ten coach told me today: If you're under $12 million in NIL, you're in trouble. " For reference, it was reported in mid-2025 that three Big Ten teams were among the top five spenders in the nation. Those included Michigan ($8.
8 million), Maryland ($7. 1 million), and Iowa ($6. 6 million).
While these numbers were just estimates, Kentucky was on the hot seat this year after an early tournament exit with a rumored cost of $22 million for their roster. When it comes to the 2026 transfer portal, Kansas' Flory Bidunga has a reported asking price of $5 million. This is simply money Wisconsin doesn't have to spend on its men's basketball program, and these players are pricing out schools left and right.