Tyler Wahl (born March 7, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for KK Zadar of the Premijer liga (Croatian basketball) and ABA League. He played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers of the Big Ten Conference.
_(1).jpg) Wahl playing with the University of Wisconsin in the 2023 Big Ten men's basketball tournament | |
| No. 5 – KK Zadar | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward |
| League | Premijer liga (Croatian basketball) and ABA League |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 7, 2001 Lakeville, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Listed weight | 225 lb (102 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Lakeville North (Lakeville, Minnesota) |
| College | Wisconsin (2019–present) |
| NBA draft | 2024: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2024–present |
| Career history | |
| 2024 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2024–present | KK Zadar |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Early life and high school career
editWahl was born in Lakeville, Minnesota[1] and played at Lakeville North High School. During his junior season, Wahl averaged 17.5 points (63.1% FG), 12.0 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 2.9 blocks per game, which helped guide Lakeville North to a record of 27–5 and a trip to the 2018 Class 4A state tournament semifinals. As a senior, he averaged 18.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game. He helped lead the Lakeville North Panthers to a 27–5 record in 2018–19, helping guide the team to its first-ever conference title and an appearance in the Class 4A state championship game. He earned back-to-back AP second-team all-state honors as a junior and senior. Wahl was also named a finalist for Minnesota Mr. Basketball.[2]
Recruiting
editWahl committed to Wisconsin after receiving offers from Minnesota, Northwestern, Butler, Northern Iowa, Iowa State, among other offers.[3]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyler Wahl SF |
Lakeville, MN | Lakeville North High School (MN) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jun 21, 2018 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: N/A
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| Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 176 | ||||||
Sources:
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College career
editFreshman season
editWahl arrived as a highly touted freshman, but the Badgers already had experienced forwards Nate Reuvers, Micah Potter, and Aleem Ford. His talent, however, was undeniable, and coach Greg Gard had to find a role for Wahl. Gard viewed Wahl as a "Swiss Army knife" capable of playing multiple roles: distributing the ball as a point guard point guard, defending the opposing team's best player, sliding over to take a charge, or being the primary scorer.[4] He played in all 31 games, including three starts, averaging 2.5 points and 2.6 rebounds while playing 15.5 minutes per game as a true freshman.[5]
Sophomore season
editWahl secured a larger role on a senior-heavy Wisconsin roster. He played in 31 games and started the final 18. As the team's second-leading rebounder, he averaged 4.3 rebounds per game. Wahl's assertiveness grew on the court as his playing time and confidence increased.[6] Wahl showed his all-around skills during a victory against UW–Green Bay when he scored 11 points, 15 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks.[7]
Junior season
editWahl was a big part of the 2021–22 season for the Badgers, as they won a share of the Big Ten regular season title. Early in the season, Wahl was named to the All-Tournament Team at the 2021 Maui Invitational where the Badgers were the champions of the tournament.[8] He improved his scoring, field goal percentage, free throw percentage, rebounding, assists, steals, and blocks. He was tabbed as the "glue guy" for the Badgers by coach Greg Gard.[9] Wahl scored 20 or more points three different times during the season, but none was more complete than the victory over the 16th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. Wahl put up 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting (2–4 3FG), 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals in the top 20 matchup.[10] Following the season, Wahl was named Big Ten honorable mention.[11]
Senior season
editThe Badgers came out strong during the 2022–23 season with a third-place finish at the 2022 Battle 4 Atlantis where Wahl was named to the All-Tournament Team.[12] Wahl and the Badgers started 11–2 and 3–0 in the Big Ten before Wahl went down with an ankle injury against Minnesota. Wahl missed the next three games, all of which the Badgers lost. Wahl returned but was hampered for most of the rest of the season.[13] Wahl still managed an 11.3 scoring average per game plus a career-high in rebounds (6.3) and assists (2.5) per game. Following the season, Wahl had the decision to go pro, transfer or return for a 5th season due to the pandemic.[14]
Graduate season
editAbout a month after the 2022–23 season ended, Wahl announced that he will take advantage of the pandemic wavier and return to Wisconsin for a fifth season.[15] Early in the season, the Badgers participated in the 2023 Fort Myers Tip-Off in which Wisconsin defeated SMU for the title. Wahl was named to the All-Tournament Team and the Tournament's MVP.[16] Following the completion of the regular season, Wahl was named All-Big Ten honorable mention by the coaches.[17]
Professional career
editOn June 27, 2024, after going undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft, Wahl signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves.[18]
Career statistics
edit| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | Wisconsin | 31 | 3 | 15.4 | .430 | .214 | .389 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 2.6 |
| 2020–21 | Wisconsin | 31 | 17 | 24.7 | .436 | .278 | .567 | 4.3 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 5.2 |
| 2021–22 | Wisconsin | 32 | 32 | 30.5 | .516 | .162 | .700 | 5.9 | 1.5 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 11.4 |
| 2022–23 | Wisconsin | 32 | 32 | 31.5 | .423 | .294 | .634 | 6.3 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 11.3 |
| 2023–24 | Wisconsin | 36 | 36 | 28.4 | .535 | .188 | .659 | 5.4 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 10.6 |
| Career | 162 | 121 | 26.2 | .477 | .232 | .637 | 4.9 | 1.7 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 8.3 | |
Personal life
editWahl's parents are Tim and Kaye Wahl. His father, Tim, played college basketball at Mankato State University and professionally in Germany after he was a finalist for the Minnesota Mr. Basketball award.[20] Tyler's sister played college basketball at UW–La Crosse and is on the top 20 career scoring list for the Eagles.[21]
References
edit- ^ "Tyler Wahl Profile". cbssports.com. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "Here are the 5 finalists for the Minnesota Mr. Basketball award". bringmethenews.com. March 4, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin Basketball: Tyler Wahl signs with the Badgers". badgersofhonor.com. November 14, 2018. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "'He's the ultimate utility guy': Freshman Tyler Wahl could provide a boost to Wisconsin's frontcourt". October 17, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin basketball returning player profile: Tyler Wahl". The Athletic. September 4, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "The numbers show these sophomore college basketball players have made big leaps in 2020–21". ncaa.com. December 10, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Green Bay vs. Wisconsin Box Score (Men), December 1, 2020". sports-reference.com. December 1, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Two Badgers make the Maui Invitational All-Tournament Team". badgerswire.usatoday.com. November 25, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin basketball 2021–2022: Tyler Wahl's season in review and top overall performances". si.com. March 24, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Ohio State vs. Wisconsin Box Score (Men), January 13, 2022". sports-reference.com. January 13, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "2021–22 Big Ten Men's Basketball Postseason Honors Announced". Big Ten Conference. March 8, 2022. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "2022–2023 Battle 4 Atlantis Information". basketball.realgm.com. November 25, 2022. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin has missed Tyler Wahl significantly the last three games but the senior is expected back Tuesday". jsonline.com. January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Shocking Wisconsin men's basketball loss leaves Tyler Wahl's future uncertain". badgerextra.com. March 8, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin's Tyler Wahl says he's returning for fifth season". ESPN.com. April 4, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "POSTGAME NOTES Wisconsin vs SMU" (PDF). uwbadgers.com. November 22, 2023. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
- ^ "Big Ten Announces 2024 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors". Big Ten Conference. March 12, 2024. Archived from the original on March 12, 2024. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
- ^ Zgoda, Jerry (9 July 2024). "Timberwolves free agent signee Tyler Wahl is in familiar territory". Star Tribune. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
- ^ "Tyler Wahl Statistics". ESPN. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Wisconsin senior Tyler Wahl has shown tenacity and versatility on the court since his youth". November 5, 2022. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ "Individual Records (updated after 2022–23)" (PDF). March 15, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2024.