Written by Yaniv Horenstein and Leo Schulhof

College basketball is BACK! The Oregon men’s basketball team is set to begin their season this Monday (Nov 6) against Georgia. With the transfer portal taking over NCAA sports, players jumping ship has become the new normal in college basketball. Oregon is a prime example of the changing times with heavy roster turnover. Of the 15 players on the roster, eight are playing their first season in green and yellow. Let’s dive into Dana Altman’s squad for this year.
 
Oregon’s most intriguing position will be the center. N’Faly Dante is returning for his fifth season at Oregon, and the 6’11 dominant big man was named to the preseason All-Pac 12 first team. Dante averaged 13 points and eight rebounds last season while recording ten double-doubles in 30 starts. Dante shines in the low post as a force on both offense and defense and is looking to raise his stock in next year’s NBA draft. He came back for a fifth season with the hopes of leading Oregon back into the NCAA tournament. He’ll get an opportunity to do so with his old national team and AAU teammate, Mahamadou Diawara. Diawara is joining the Ducks after playing for four years for Stetson University in Florida. The 6’10 big man came off the bench last season and played 13 minutes per game while averaging four points and four boards.

The other center who could very well see starters minutes this season is Nate Bittle, the former five-star recruit entering his junior year at the UO. Bittle was impressive at the end of the season, having breakout performances in the NIT. He averaged 15 points, seven rebounds, and almost two blocks a game. The 7-footer has shown the ability to score from all over the court and continues to improve behind the arc, shooting 34% from 3. 
 
Oregon’s freshman class of recruits ranks 11th in the country, according to 247 Sports. Atop their class is five-star prospect, Kwame Evans, who is a 6’9 forward and McDonalds All-American. Evans is from Monteverde Academy in Florida and is the fourth highest recruit in Oregon basketball history. He’ll be joined by the two best high school prospects in the state of Oregon --- Mookie Cook and Jackson Shelstad.  Mookie Cook is a consensus 4-star small forward from Jefferson High School in Portland Oregon, and he too, is a McDonald’s All-American. Cook has shown the ability to be a playmaker and attack the rim, while also serving as a strong defensive presence. Off the court, Cook starred in the movie, Shooting Stars, in which he played LeBron James. Unfortunately, Duck fans will have to wait a bit longer to see the star in action, as Mookie suffered an ankle injury in April and will likely be sidelined until late December.
 
Jackson Shelstad will strengthen Oregon’s guard rotation, especially after the loss of Will Richardson, the starting point guard who led Oregon in minutes, assists, and steals last season. The West Linn native and 2022-23 Oregon High School Player of the Year is a four-star recruit who averaged over 28 points a game and almost two steals in his senior season. Shelstad will be mentored by a plethora of veteran guards on Oregon’s roster. 

Dana Altman loves his experienced players, hence the addition of three upperclassmen guard transfers acquired in the portal. Oregon got Kario Oquendo, a 6’4 senior who played for the Georgia Bulldogs for 2 seasons, averaging 13 points, and three rebounds as a starter. Oquendo is a multifaceted scorer and will get a chance to get buckets against his old team when the Ducks make their season debut against UGA this Monday. Sharpshooter Jesse Zarzuela from Central Michigan will also be arriving in Eugene through the portal and will look to add his shooting as a weapon to Oregon’s offense. Zarzuela scored 16 points a game on 36% from beyond the three point line, and displayed his defensive prowess at times, averaging a steal a game. Lastly, Dana secured Jadrian Tracey, who is looking for his third home in as many years. Tracey started his college career at St. Joseph’s and then found his way to Florida Southwestern where he scored a career-high 34 points vs. State College of Florida. We will see what kind of impact the athletic guard is able to make as a Duck. 
 
There will be some familiar faces in the guard rotation for Altman this season. Jermaine Couisnard is entering his senior season and his second as a Duck. Couisnard played a vital role to the Ducks offense last season, scoring 13 points, and knocking down almost 2 threes every game. He missed the beginning of the season with an injury, so it took him a while to gel with the lineup. Once he was fully acclimated, he was crucial to the team’s success, scoring double digits in seven of their last nine games. Another skilled scorer for the Ducks is Keeshawn Barthelemy, the senior guard who played for Colorado before coming to Oregon last year. This season, Barthelemy will look to continue his efficiency as a shooter and become more of a playmaker, as the Ducks will need a facilitator that keeps the offense flowing smoothly. Lastly, Brennan Rigsby, who played valuable minutes for the Ducks last season with all the injuries they faced, will also be returning for his junior season. He is a scrappy guard that prides himself on his hustle, and the Ducks need that energy on their team. 

The Ducks out of conference schedule has some exciting matchups that should entice all basketball fans. Oregon will host Michigan in MKA on December second , and they’ll play Syracuse at a neutral site in South Dakota on December 17th . For their midseason tournament, the Ducks will take part in the Emerald Coast Classic in Niceville, Florida. They’ll take on Santa Clara in the first round, and then either Alabama or Ohio State depending on how the bracket plays out. Their first game of the season, however, will be in Las Vegas against Georgia this Monday, November 6th , and the tipoff will be at 1:30 in the afternoon. The Bulldogs finished last season at .500 (16-16) and did not participate in any postseason tournaments. This will be a good chance for the Ducks to get off to a strong start against a Power 5 conference team. 

The Ducks finished last season 21-15 and made it to the third round of the NIT tournament. That made it two years of the NIT in a row, after appearing in the NCAA tournament in seven out of eight years. The Ducks, with coach Dana Altman at the helm, are looking to bounce back this season and make their return to the March Madness tourney. Make sure to tune in for an exciting season of Duck basketball.