Post by mhbruin on Jul 8, 2022 9:38:24 GMT -8
CHANGES
Dior Johnson decommits from Oregon. Signs with Pitt instead.
Will Richardson and Quincy Guerrier drop out of the draft and return to Oreon.
=====================
Next are the 5th-7th place Oregon Ducks. Coming off of two straight Pac-12 titles, Oregon fans didn't expect 19-14 records and an NIT bid. This was only the second time in the last 10 years that Altman didn't get them into the NCAA tournament.
What went wrong? Perhaps it's the transfer portal. For years, Dana Altman has used transfers to fill his roster with proven, more experienced players. However, everyone has discovered the portal, and even the top programs are scouring the portal for elite talent. Last season his incoming transfers were ranked #21, #25, and #47.
With the loss of Chris Duarte and Eugene Omoruyi to the pros, Altman needed to find some productive transfers to replace them. The transfers coming to Oregon just weren't as good as the guys who left.
This off-season Altman brought in two transfers who were at least part-time starters for Power 5 teams. They should contribute.
Altman can still coach. and he has quite a bit of talent to work with this season.
GRADUATING
Young was their second-leading scorer and led the team in steals, but he wasn't a great shooter.
IN THE DRAFT OR TURNING PRO
TRANSFERRING OUT
Kepnang was big and strong, and looked good at time. In limited minutes, he led the team in blocks. Oregon is loaded at center, so I don't think he will be missed.
De'VionHarmon had a good season and will be missed.
Williams looked pretty good for his first season in Eugene, but his production and minutes fell off last season.
RETURNING
Note about classes: With the extra year of eligibility, there is no clear way to label players. If a player is in his 4th season, but will have another year of eligibility after this year, I am calling him "Jr 4".
With the return of Will Richardson and Guerrier return, Altman has an good core of returning players to build on. Oregon returns around half their minutes, points, rebounds and assists.
Richardson did everything really well, except sometimes he didn't seem assertive enough. He has the skills to take over a game. If he finds the will to do it, he should be one of the best players in the league.
Guerrier scored over 20 four times last season. However, he needs more consistency.
Soares was a decent reserve last year. He could be a starter, and he will need to step it up for the Ducks.
Dante managed to finally stay healthy last season, and looked pretty good. If he can find a more consistent offensive game, he could be a force.
Bittle looked a bit lost out there last season, but he has talent. He should be a quality backup to Dante. Or to incoming freshman Wear. Or to both.
The issues with this roster seem pretty common, shooting and PG player. Other than Richardson, no one is a very good outside shooter. Also, Richardson is the only one with a decent A/TO ratio.
Richardson he is probably better playing off the ball. If Altman can come up with a quality PG, it will help this team a lot. The key to the entire season could be a transfer PG.
RECRUITS
(#15 33 class, #3 in Pac-12)
Ware is not Superman. Superman's real name is Kal-El. Kel'el Ware is a 5-star center. He could be a star for the Ducks and push Dante out of the starting lineup.
If you are counting, there are three 5-star centers on the Ducks roster. I am not sure how Altman finds enough PT to keep them all happy.
Dior Johnson had a bit of a reputation as a selfish player in high school, but he was surrounded by so little talent, perhaps he had to take a ton of shots. When I saw him, I though he was a good player. If he shoots well as a freshman and is an effective PG, that will help this team a lot. That's a lot to expect from a freshman.
There was always some question about Dior Johnson. He had played a 4 high schools in 4 years. Will he play at Pitt? Beats me.
Couisnard doesn't make food processors. He led the Gamecocks in scoring, assists, and steals. He also led them turnovers and his shooting percentage wasn't great, which may be why he was only a part-time starter for the other USC. He scored 33 against LSU. He scored a total of 3 points in two games against Tennessee. I guess he's like a box of chocolates.
Barthélémy was a nice-looking PG at Colorado. He managed the game well, and that may be the player that the Ducks need to feed the ball to Richardson and the other scorers. Barthélémy had a pretty good 1.8 A/TO ratio. However, he shot the ball worse than Couisnard. Think he will be the key to how good Oregon is this season.
CONCLUSION
The return of Will Richardson is huge for the Ducks. He was second-team All-Conference last season and is likely to be first team this season. Guerrier gives them another returning starter.
Dior Johnson decommits from Oregon. Signs with Pitt instead.
Will Richardson and Quincy Guerrier drop out of the draft and return to Oreon.
=====================
Next are the 5th-7th place Oregon Ducks. Coming off of two straight Pac-12 titles, Oregon fans didn't expect 19-14 records and an NIT bid. This was only the second time in the last 10 years that Altman didn't get them into the NCAA tournament.
What went wrong? Perhaps it's the transfer portal. For years, Dana Altman has used transfers to fill his roster with proven, more experienced players. However, everyone has discovered the portal, and even the top programs are scouring the portal for elite talent. Last season his incoming transfers were ranked #21, #25, and #47.
With the loss of Chris Duarte and Eugene Omoruyi to the pros, Altman needed to find some productive transfers to replace them. The transfers coming to Oregon just weren't as good as the guys who left.
This off-season Altman brought in two transfers who were at least part-time starters for Power 5 teams. They should contribute.
Altman can still coach. and he has quite a bit of talent to work with this season.
GRADUATING
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Jacob Young | 35 | 31 | 30 | 14 | 4 | 4 |
Young was their second-leading scorer and led the team in steals, but he wasn't a great shooter.
IN THE DRAFT OR TURNING PRO
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Can Return? |
| - None - |
TRANSFERRING OUT
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Destination |
| Franck Kepnang | 35 | 5 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 0 | Washington |
| De'Vion Harmon | 35 | 34 | 31 | 11 | 3 | 2 | Texas Tech |
| Isaac Johnson | 14 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Utah State |
| Eric Williams, Jr. | 33 | 11 | 27 | 8 | 5 | 1 | San Diego |
Kepnang was big and strong, and looked good at time. In limited minutes, he led the team in blocks. Oregon is loaded at center, so I don't think he will be missed.
De'VionHarmon had a good season and will be missed.
Williams looked pretty good for his first season in Eugene, but his production and minutes fell off last season.
RETURNING
Note about classes: With the extra year of eligibility, there is no clear way to label players. If a player is in his 4th season, but will have another year of eligibility after this year, I am calling him "Jr 4".
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG% | 3Pt% | A/TO | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Will Richardson | 30 | 30 | 32 | 14 | 4 | 4 | 45% | 39% | 1.7 | Sr 5 | 4 | 42 |
| Quincy Guerrier | 35 | 35 | 26 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 42% | 33% | 0.6 | Jr 4 | 4 | 121 |
| N'Faly Dante | 32 | 27 | 20 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 68% | 0.4 | Jr 4 | 5 | 24 | |
| Rivaldo Soares | 35 | 2 | 18 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 43% | 27% | 1.1 | Jr 4 | #10 Juco | |
| Nate Bittle | 23 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 50% | 20% | 0.3 | So | 5 | 16 |
| Lok Wur | 12 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 27% | 29% | 2.0 | So 3 | 3 | 478 |
With the return of Will Richardson and Guerrier return, Altman has an good core of returning players to build on. Oregon returns around half their minutes, points, rebounds and assists.
Richardson did everything really well, except sometimes he didn't seem assertive enough. He has the skills to take over a game. If he finds the will to do it, he should be one of the best players in the league.
Guerrier scored over 20 four times last season. However, he needs more consistency.
Soares was a decent reserve last year. He could be a starter, and he will need to step it up for the Ducks.
Dante managed to finally stay healthy last season, and looked pretty good. If he can find a more consistent offensive game, he could be a force.
Bittle looked a bit lost out there last season, but he has talent. He should be a quality backup to Dante. Or to incoming freshman Wear. Or to both.
The issues with this roster seem pretty common, shooting and PG player. Other than Richardson, no one is a very good outside shooter. Also, Richardson is the only one with a decent A/TO ratio.
Richardson he is probably better playing off the ball. If Altman can come up with a quality PG, it will help this team a lot. The key to the entire season could be a transfer PG.
RECRUITS
(#
| Player | Size | Position | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Offers |
| Kel'el Ware | 7-0 210 | C | 5 | 9 | Arkansas, Baylor, Kansas, Illinois |
| 4 | |||||
| Tyrone Williams | 6-5 200 | SG | #2 JUCO | Penn State | |
| Brennan Rigsby | 6-3 180 | PG | #10 JUCO | Buffalo, Missouri, New Mexico St |
Ware is not Superman. Superman's real name is Kal-El. Kel'el Ware is a 5-star center. He could be a star for the Ducks and push Dante out of the starting lineup.
If you are counting, there are three 5-star centers on the Ducks roster. I am not sure how Altman finds enough PT to keep them all happy.
There was always some question about Dior Johnson. He had played a 4 high schools in 4 years. Will he play at Pitt? Beats me.
TRANSFERRING IN
| Player | Size | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG % | 3-Pt % | A/TO | From | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Transfer Rank |
| Keeshawn Barthélémy | 6-2 171 | 33 | 28 | 26 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 35% | 30% | 1.9 | Colorado | So 3 | 3 | 170 | #63 |
| Jermaine Couisnard | 6-4 211 | 26 | 16 | 25 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 40% | 32% | 1.4 | South Carolina | Jr 4 | 3 | 218 | Unranked |
Couisnard doesn't make food processors. He led the Gamecocks in scoring, assists, and steals. He also led them turnovers and his shooting percentage wasn't great, which may be why he was only a part-time starter for the other USC. He scored 33 against LSU. He scored a total of 3 points in two games against Tennessee. I guess he's like a box of chocolates.
Barthélémy was a nice-looking PG at Colorado. He managed the game well, and that may be the player that the Ducks need to feed the ball to Richardson and the other scorers. Barthélémy had a pretty good 1.8 A/TO ratio. However, he shot the ball worse than Couisnard. Think he will be the key to how good Oregon is this season.
CONCLUSION
The return of Will Richardson is huge for the Ducks. He was second-team All-Conference last season and is likely to be first team this season. Guerrier gives them another returning starter.
I expect the Ducks will start Will Richardson, N'Faly Dante, and Quincy Guerrier. The last two starters are likely to be transfer Keeshawn Barthélémy, and either Jermaine Couisnard or Rivaldo Soares.
I think the Ducks will be a little better than last year. They won't be the most talented team in the league. They have the most 5-star players, but all three play the same position.
They have a potential stars in Richardson and freshman Wear. They have several good players.
Dana Altman is the kind of coach who can put these guys together into a quality Pac-12 team. With the weakness of most of the Pac-12, that a pretty low bar.
I think a lot depends on how good Barthélémy is at PG for them. Think they finish around 4th in the league, and squarely on the bubble.
JUCO's are always a bit of an unknown. If one of the two that Altman is bringing in turns out to be really good, expect them to finish higher.
Wilner writes:
2. Oregon (3): The outlook has brightened considerably for the Ducks, particularly on the perimeter, with the return of guard Will Richardson and the arrivals of Jermaine Couisnard (South Carolina) and Keeshawn Barthelemy (Colorado). No team has more size, but it’s either unproven or oft-injured size. If former five-star recruit N’Faly Dante becomes more consistent (and stays healthy), Oregon will have a dominant big man to balance the experienced background and make a run at the regular-season title.
Torvick picks them 3rd.
I think the Ducks will be a little better than last year. They won't be the most talented team in the league. They have the most 5-star players, but all three play the same position.
They have a potential stars in Richardson and freshman Wear. They have several good players.
Dana Altman is the kind of coach who can put these guys together into a quality Pac-12 team. With the weakness of most of the Pac-12, that a pretty low bar.
I think a lot depends on how good Barthélémy is at PG for them. Think they finish around 4th in the league, and squarely on the bubble.
JUCO's are always a bit of an unknown. If one of the two that Altman is bringing in turns out to be really good, expect them to finish higher.
Wilner writes:
2. Oregon (3): The outlook has brightened considerably for the Ducks, particularly on the perimeter, with the return of guard Will Richardson and the arrivals of Jermaine Couisnard (South Carolina) and Keeshawn Barthelemy (Colorado). No team has more size, but it’s either unproven or oft-injured size. If former five-star recruit N’Faly Dante becomes more consistent (and stays healthy), Oregon will have a dominant big man to balance the experienced background and make a run at the regular-season title.
Torvick picks them 3rd.