Earlier this week, Efe Ashakah of NPH Scouting reported that the Badgers coaching staff watched 2023 center Cyril Martynov out of Toronto, Canada, play during the July evaluation period, and it would appear they came away rather impressed.
Martynov, who currently holds offers from Arizona State, Georgia Tech, and UC-Santa Barbara, confirmed to BadgersWire that Coach Gard has also offered him a scholarship to play for the Badgers; however, there is a caveat.
The offer from UW is contingent on him reclassifying to the 2022 recruiting class and joining the program this fall.
“Right now, they [UW] are pitching the development aspect for 2022, which would obviously be much better at the University,” Martynov explained.
With Chris Vogt’s graduation, the Badgers are incredibly thin in the frontcourt behind starting center Steven Crowl – and desperately need depth. UW has been unable to find a good fit in the transfer portal, so this is undoubtedly a unique way of addressing the issue.
The 6-foot-11, 230-pound center from Lawrenceville High School (N.J.) is physically ready for college and has the ideal tools for a developmental big man. He has good size and athleticism, rebounds well, and can shoot from beyond the arc.
The Canadian-born big man has a very mature game but still has plenty of unrealized potential on the court. Overall, his versatility should make him a mismatch against opposing centers down the road.
He’s still in the early stages of building a relationship with the Badgers coaching staff, but Martynov believes UW could make a lot of sense for him.
“There is definitely mutual interest – I think I fit Wisconsin’s program well, and they’d be a good fit for me,” he added.
Martynov also shared that his original plan was to return to school and be a member of the 2023 recruiting class, but he and his family are discussing all options for the upcoming season.
“I’m looking for a mix of high-level basketball and academics while also having a coach that values my development and is willing to work with me towards my goals,” Martynov said.
Coach Gard and the unranked big man will essentially be speed-dating from here on out. Martynov is expected to take an official visit to Wisconsin sometime in August and would need to make a reclassification decision for the upcoming season quickly after that.
Wisconsin’s coaching staff doesn’t make this move unless they believe he can slot into meaningful minutes for the Badgers this upcoming season.
Behind Crowl, UW has Chris Hodges, Carter Gilmore, and Markus Ilver, which isn’t ideal in a post-dominated conference like the Big Ten.
I believe he’d slot into the backup center role from day one as long as he can get up to speed and hold his own defensively.
Martynov’s recruitment will be exciting to monitor due to its unusually time-sensitive and forward-thinking nature.
Introducing a new face to the @TeamFinalEYBL family ! Cyril Martynov is about to blowup this @NikeEYB spring/summer!!! #TFFam #BuiltDifferent pic.twitter.com/kjzRvrGcP3
— Team Final Nike EYBL (@TeamFinalEYBL) March 17, 2022
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