Badger Bits: Frank Kaminsky reflects on senior year

Frank The Tank Talks Life, Sports, And Game of Thrones

After the star forward put up 31 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three blocks against Michigan State, Frank Kaminsky joined both Mike & Mike in the Morning and the Dan Patrick Show on Tuesday to talk about his senior year, hecklers, and his new puppy. As he wraps up a prestigious regular season with the Badgers, everyone wants to know more about the Naismith award hopeful. Kaminsky not only exudes unprecedented leadership on the court but he shows fans and media alike that he has a cool head and doesn't take himself too seriously. He recognizes the microphone that he's put under and makes sure not to poorly represent himself or the team. It's this behavior (along with his talent and basketball IQ) that makes me believe he will perform at the next level.

When Patrick asked about his decision to stay for his senior year, Kaminsky had this to say:

"It wasn’t tough at all; I knew I wanted to come back to Wisconsin. I had a lot of goals I still had left to achieve in college [and] I got one of those the other day by winning at least a share of the Big Ten title."

I understand that when the money is there, sometimes it is best to take it. I understand the fear of injury upon returning for another year. I understand these things. But when you know as an athlete that you have yet to reach your ceiling, that you have a team to return to that is poised to make it deep into the tournament, and a coach that will push you to improve every aspect of your game, you have to come back and play. Kaminsky recognized these factors. He knew he could be better and he knew he could rejoin his teammates and work towards another Final Four run. Now, with three games left in the regular season, the Badgers are ranked sixth in the nation vying for a No. 1 seed in large part due to Kaminsky.

Kaminsky also spoke about his own performances:

"Sometimes I shock myself. But I’ve always just worked as hard as I could to be as good as I can and it’s worked out so far."

Sometimes you shock us too, Frank. But seriously, this man is a freak of nature. I alluded to it earlier but I feel very confident that the talent we are seeing at the college level will translate to the NBA. The physicality of the Big Ten conference is no joke and is a solid stepping stone to the NBA. Regardless of his future plans, the Badgers will need Kaminsky to be a focal point of the team as they complete their regular season and prepare for March Madness.

Nigel Hayes is Cash Money

So while I'm trying to figure out how to fold my laundry, the men and women at Nerd Wallet are calculating which college basketball players have the most value to their team. If I fully grasped the method by which they calculated the player's value I'd break it down to you but it goes something along the lines of this: Nerd Wallet calculated the total revenue of the top basketball programs, gave 50 percent to the players, and then allocated that 50 percent to the players based off of their win shares (how many wins a player contributed too). Regardless, Nigel Hayes was calculated as the most valuable small forward. The validity of these sorts of statistics is up for grabs but regardless it reaffirms that if both Dekker and Kaminsky head to the draft, Hayes will be able to step up and lead this program.

Other Links

Recruiting:

Badgers offer 4-star QB Peters | Badger247.com

Wisconsin Interested in Baptise | Badger247.com ($)

Will Stipends Affect Recruiting? | Badger247.com

Reese Could See Himself as a Badger | BadgerBlitz.com ($)

In-state Countdown #13 | BadgerBlitz.com

Chryst Targets CB Coleman | BadgerNation.com

Basketball:

Oates: A Number One Seed is Vital | Madison.com

Dukan Looks To Shake Shooting Woes | Fox Sports Wisconsin

Wrestling:

Connor Medbury Earns Top Seed | Madison.com