The Wisconsin basketball staff recently hosted a top in-state recruit within the 2027 recruiting class for a pivotal skills camp.

While the staff have only just begun seriously recruiting the class, the Badgers are in an interesting territory due to the significance of the 2027 class. Currently, the state of Wisconsin has four four-star recruits in the 2027 class with two such recruits already making huge waves. One such recruit is Dooney Johnson, a Milwaukee native who is currently considered to be a top-50 recruit in the class.

The Wisconsin basketball staff recently held a skills camp for high school athletes and invited Johnson alongside the majority of the 2027 in-state class. Johnson has held a scholarship from the Wisconsin basketball staff since last November and has since picked up offers from LSU, Washington, and Oklahoma State.

While Wisconsin took the time to extend offers elsewhere in the class during the skills camp, Johnson took the experience in and potentially drew closer to the program.

Huge Wisconsin Basketball In-State 2027 Prospect Hints at Possibility of Staying Home 2 Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard (left) walks onto the court during a time out in the first half of the 2025 TIAA Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament final game against the Michigan Wolverines on Sunday, March 16, 2025, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Michigan defeated Wisconsin 59-53.

The Wisconsin basketball staff truly loves what the 6-foot-5-inch athlete has to offer on the court, but the real question has been whether or not the staff can keep the recruit within the state.

Wisconsin had been one of the first programs to extend an offer to Johnson but already expected to have to fight an uphill battle to land the recruit. Keeping some top talent within the state is relatively easy in terms of what the entire recruiting landscape currently looks like. However, keeping top national talent within the state is another task and one that often proves to be more difficult.

Johnson, currently ranked as the 35th overall recruit in the 2027 recruiting class, is only just scratching the surface of his recruitment and already the athlete has big offers on the table. The process is only going to become more difficult for the Wisconsin basketball staff as other bigger programs join the list over time.

While many Badgers fans and analysts alike have already ruled out players such as Donovan Davis, Jalen Brown, and Jack Kohnen, Johnson could be the man the program keeps close to home. Recently, Johnson responded to a comment on a 247 Sports interview that suggested the recruit viewed Wisconsin as a “thanks, but no thanks” scholarship offer. Johnson replied but simply stating “I wouldn’t say that” which could imply the athlete has not ruled out any programs or states this early into his recruitment.

The response is not necessarily enough to say that Johnson is staying in the state of Wisconsin for college, but the response is encouraging as the Wisconsin basketball staff has kept a close eye on the recruit. Moving forward, the Wisconsin basketball staff will have to be active with Johnson as more programs are bound to discover on of the top recruits in the 2027 class.

Wisconsin Basketball Staff Reaches Out to Talented 2027 Milwaukee Native 2 Mar 20, 2025; Denver, CO, USA; Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard reacts during the second half against the Montana Grizzlies in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images