Post by mhbruin on May 13, 2023 17:05:34 GMT -8
CHANGES
Added transfer Jesse Zarzuela.
June 25: Incoming transfer Devan Cambridge switched from the Ducks to Texas Tech.
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Next are the 4th Oregon Ducks.
Dana Altman has led the Ducks to 7 of the last 10 NCAA tournaments. HOWEVER, two of the three misses were the last two seasons. After 2 straight conference champships, the Ducks have finished 5th and 4th in the last two seasons. Oregon hasn't been terrible, but Coach Altman and the Nike money have built up some lofty expectations in Eugene.
Last season Oregon had a couple of good wins over Arizona and ASU. However they had bad losses to the likes of Wisconsin (yes, Wisconsin was a bad team), UC Irvine, Utah Valley, and Washington. UCLA beat them three times.
Their KenPom numbers were respectable: #42 on offense and #53 on defense. However, respectable isn't good.
Altman can still coach. Will he have the talent? The short answer is "yes". But is it the right mix of talent? That is not so obvious.
GRADUATING
After an eternity at Oregon (actually 5 years, which might seem like an eternity to live in Eugene) Will Richardson is moving on. He always seemed like he was on the edge of greatness, but never quite got there.
IN THE DRAFT OR TURNING PRO
TRANSFERRING OUT
The Ducks lose two guys who started a lot and a 5-star freshman who was oozing talent.
RETURNING
Although the Ducks lose a 5-star center in Kel'el Ware, they still keep two 5-star centers. Dante and Bittle sometimes played together. Dante was finally healthy and played really well. Bittle started to really come on as the season progressed. Against UCF in the NIT, he scored 21 points and had 13 rebounds. Both bigs were top 10 in the Pac-12 in blocks. With a 5-star freshman PF, they should be stocked with quality bigs.
As for the wings, they generally decent, but not great shooters. Barthelemy was their best shooter at 42% and a decent ball handler. At 35%, he is their best returning 3-point shooter.
Gabe Reichle is the brother of Zach Reichle who played at Oregon State. He's a career 22% shooter (if you want to call this a career.)
I don't know if Brennan Rigsby ever picked up the rice in the church where his wedding has been, or if it's in a dream. However, he is only a Pac-12 level player in a dream.
RECRUITS
(#6 class, #2 in Pac-12)
This is a recruiting class that can turn things around in Eugene. When you get 3 of the Top 27 players in a class, you are Kentucky, Duke, or doing an amazing job of recruiting. Or Nike may be providing a lot of NIL money.
TRANSFERRING IN
(#85 transfer class, #7 in Pac-12)
Adding to their massive recruiting haul are two guys who started quite a few games at Power 5 programs. Devan Cambridge has played 3 seasons at Auburn, 1 season at ASU, and now brings his considreable skills to Eugene. I thought he was the better Cambridge brother. He was very good at getting to the rim.
Losing Cambrige drops Oregon from the #55 transfer class in the nation to #85 and #4 in the Pac-12 to #7.
Kario Oquendo was one of the better players on one of the worst teams in the SEC. He was their second leading scorer with attrocious shooting. He probably should have gone to Arizona State, where everyone has the green light all the time.
"Eugene will be Jesse Zarzuela’s sixth stop in six seasons. He previously went to UTEP where he redshirted before going to junior colleges Navarro College and Missouri State West Plains. The 6-foot-3 sharpshooter then made stops at Coppin State and most recently Central Michigan. "
CMU was one of the worst teams in the MAC. He was their second leading scorer, but their 9th best shooter. I wouldn't call him a "sharpshooter". I would be surprised if he is a big factor for the Ducks next season.
If Dana Altman was looking for 3-point shooting in the portal, he doesn't seem to have found it, although at 36%, Zaruela is better than any returning Duck.
CONCLUSION
6. Oregon
Dana Altman has once again remade his roster, and the individual pieces are impressive. The Ducks added three recruits who rate among the top-10 players nationally at their positions. They signed three impact transfers (Georgia’s Kario Oquendo,ASU’s Devan Cambridge and Central Michigan’s Jesse Zarzuela). And they retained big man N’Faly Dante. But after two disappointing seasons in which Altman was unable to craft cohesive units, we are slightly skeptical that the whole will equal the parts. Previous: 5
Vrooman: 2
Added transfer Jesse Zarzuela.
June 25: Incoming transfer Devan Cambridge switched from the Ducks to Texas Tech.
=====================
Next are the 4th Oregon Ducks.
Dana Altman has led the Ducks to 7 of the last 10 NCAA tournaments. HOWEVER, two of the three misses were the last two seasons. After 2 straight conference champships, the Ducks have finished 5th and 4th in the last two seasons. Oregon hasn't been terrible, but Coach Altman and the Nike money have built up some lofty expectations in Eugene.
Last season Oregon had a couple of good wins over Arizona and ASU. However they had bad losses to the likes of Wisconsin (yes, Wisconsin was a bad team), UC Irvine, Utah Valley, and Washington. UCLA beat them three times.
Their KenPom numbers were respectable: #42 on offense and #53 on defense. However, respectable isn't good.
Altman can still coach. Will he have the talent? The short answer is "yes". But is it the right mix of talent? That is not so obvious.
GRADUATING
Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
Will Richardson | 35 | 31 | 30 | 14 | 4 | 4 |
After an eternity at Oregon (actually 5 years, which might seem like an eternity to live in Eugene) Will Richardson is moving on. He always seemed like he was on the edge of greatness, but never quite got there.
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 |
Quincy Guerrier | 36 | 22 | 26 | 9 | 5 | 1.0 | Illinois |
Rivaldo Soares | 36 | 33 | 28 | 7 | 4 | 1.8 | Oklahoma |
Kel'el Ware | 35 | 4 | 16 | 7 | 4 | 0.5 | Indiana |
Lök Wur | 28 | 3 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 0.3 | Grand Canyon |
Tyrone Williams | 23 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0.2 | Old Dominion |
The Ducks lose two guys who started a lot and a 5-star freshman who was oozing talent.
RETURNING
Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG% | 3Pt% | A/TO | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
N'Faly Dante C | 31 | 30 | 26 | 13 | 8 | 1.1 | 61% | --- | 0.5 | Sr 5 | 5 | 24 |
Jermaine Couisnard G | 19 | 16 | 29 | 13 | 3 | 2.2 | 40% | 33% | 1.1 | Sr 5 | 3 | 218 |
Keeshawn Barthelemy G | 24 | 8 | 26 | 9 | 2 | 2.2 | 42% | 35% | 2.3 | Sr | 3 | 170 |
Nate Bittle C | 28 | 22 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 0.8 | 49% | 34% | 1.0 | Jr | 5 | 16 |
Brennan Rigsby G | 21 | 8 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 0.8 | 40% | 28% | 1.3 | Jr | #2 JUCO | |
Gabe Reichle G | 16 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0.4 | 15% | 22% | 0.9 | Sr | Unranked | |
Although the Ducks lose a 5-star center in Kel'el Ware, they still keep two 5-star centers. Dante and Bittle sometimes played together. Dante was finally healthy and played really well. Bittle started to really come on as the season progressed. Against UCF in the NIT, he scored 21 points and had 13 rebounds. Both bigs were top 10 in the Pac-12 in blocks. With a 5-star freshman PF, they should be stocked with quality bigs.
As for the wings, they generally decent, but not great shooters. Barthelemy was their best shooter at 42% and a decent ball handler. At 35%, he is their best returning 3-point shooter.
Gabe Reichle is the brother of Zach Reichle who played at Oregon State. He's a career 22% shooter (if you want to call this a career.)
I don't know if Brennan Rigsby ever picked up the rice in the church where his wedding has been, or if it's in a dream. However, he is only a Pac-12 level player in a dream.
RECRUITS
(#6 class, #2 in Pac-12)
Player | Size | Position | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Offers |
Kwame Evans Jr. | 6-9 200 | PF | 5 | 15 | Kentucky, Arizona, Auburn |
Jackson Shelstad | 6-0 170 | PG | 5 | 24 | UCLA, Kansas, Houston |
Mookie Cook | 6-7 200 | SF | 4 | 27 | Kentucky, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan |
This is a recruiting class that can turn things around in Eugene. When you get 3 of the Top 27 players in a class, you are Kentucky, Duke, or doing an amazing job of recruiting. Or Nike may be providing a lot of NIL money.
TRANSFERRING IN
(#85 transfer class, #7 in Pac-12)
Player | Size | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG % | 3-Pt % | A/TO | From | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Transfer Rank |
Kario Oquendo | 6-4 220 | 29 | 28 | 25 | 13 | 3 | 0.6 | 39% | 27% | 0.4 | Georgia | Sr | Unranked | 63 | |
Jesse Zarzuela | 6-3 180 | 17 | 7 | 32 | 16 | 3 | 2.7 | 40% | 36% | 1.0 | Central Michigan | Sr | 3 | 458 | |
Mahamadou Diawara | 6-10 249 | Stetson | Sr |
Losing Cambrige drops Oregon from the #55 transfer class in the nation to #85 and #4 in the Pac-12 to #7.
Kario Oquendo was one of the better players on one of the worst teams in the SEC. He was their second leading scorer with attrocious shooting. He probably should have gone to Arizona State, where everyone has the green light all the time.
"Eugene will be Jesse Zarzuela’s sixth stop in six seasons. He previously went to UTEP where he redshirted before going to junior colleges Navarro College and Missouri State West Plains. The 6-foot-3 sharpshooter then made stops at Coppin State and most recently Central Michigan. "
CMU was one of the worst teams in the MAC. He was their second leading scorer, but their 9th best shooter. I wouldn't call him a "sharpshooter". I would be surprised if he is a big factor for the Ducks next season.
If Dana Altman was looking for 3-point shooting in the portal, he doesn't seem to have found it, although at 36%, Zaruela is better than any returning Duck.
CONCLUSION
After two sub-par years, Dana Altman has added a lot of talent to his roster. He has young talent and some good seniors. They have four 5-star players. In the Pac-12, only USC with three 5-stars comes close.
The Ducks will have a very strong front line. They will go as far as the wing play can take them. That is where the loss of Cambridge hurts a lot. They don't have any proven outside shooting.
Their season will depend on Couisnard, Barthelemy, and Shelstad, and Cambridge. If those guys step up, the Ducks should be a factor in the Pac-12 next season and make the NCAA tournament. If not, it could be another season on the bubble with questions about squandering all those 5-star players.
Wilner:
The Ducks will have a very strong front line. They will go as far as the wing play can take them. That is where the loss of Cambridge hurts a lot. They don't have any proven outside shooting.
Their season will depend on Couisnard, Barthelemy, and Shelstad
Wilner:
6. Oregon
Dana Altman has once again remade his roster, and the individual pieces are impressive. The Ducks added three recruits who rate among the top-10 players nationally at their positions. They signed three impact transfers (Georgia’s Kario Oquendo,
Vrooman: 2