Prospect Spotlight: Ben Badger (2020)

Des Moines Lincoln rising senior Ben Badger has emerged this offseason as a guy who could be one of the better guards in the CIML next season.

A 5-foot-10 rising senior, Badger is the leading returning scorer for Lincoln, and will run the point guard spot next season, which is where he feels most effective.

“I like to run the floor and play point guard and get the offense organized. I believe I have the ability to get into the lane pretty much anytime I want, and from there I can kick it out or try and finish at the rim,” said Badger.

“I’m working on my shooting a lot, I need to be more confident in games when I get the ball, because I don't always feel confident when I shoot it. So, I’m working on that and I want to have an effective 3-point percentage next year.”

As a junior, Badger was a breakout player for the Rails. He averaged 9.7 points, 2.2 assists and a team-best 1.3 steals per game.

“Last year, I was more of a role player, we had Josiah (Conkrite) and several bigs that provided lots of scoring. This year, I’ll have more of an important scoring role, and I’ll need to be able to score consistently in every game.”

Badger is a busy guy, he’s a golfer and also plays tennis, he also works.

During the offseason, he doesn’t play grassroots ball, but has been working out everyday with his Lincoln team this month.

“That’s really been able to help us develop our team and build cohesion, because there's lots of new guys that will need to step up this year,” said Badger.

Recruitment: “I’m not really sure about what my future might hold. I’d say I’m pretty equal at all three (basketball, tennis, golf),” Badger said. “But I enjoy all of them, so it’s nice to balance them and sometimes have one give a different speed than the other. But I just don't know what I’m gonna do for the future yet.”