The Oregon Ducks made the first Final Four back in 1939. They didn’t return to the Final Four since then… until last year. A group of polished veteran players with developed and complementary skill sets enabled the Ducks to become a complete team, one good enough to not only make the Final Four, but beat a powerful Kansas team in front of a pro-Jayhawk crowd in Kansas City. Oregon has shown that it can be among the best of the best in the country. Now it tries to begin the process of sustaining what it has built.
The process might take off in future seasons, but this season poses an enormous challenge for Oregon and head coach Dana Altman.
Offseason Changes
The changes being endured by this program were considerable, and will be extremely hard to overcome within the scope of one season. Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey, Chris Boucher, and Jordan Bell formed a very strong nucleus. Brooks and Dorsey were rangy, athletic, versatile players who provided long-distance shooting and agile defense. Boucher and Bell were both very long, bothersome defenders and rebounders in the paint. Bell’s explosive vertical leaping ability has translated well to the NBA and should make him an excellent role player on the Golden State Warriors, who plucked him in a deal with the Chicago Bulls on draft night.
Losing even two of those four players would sting and force any team and coaching staff to make adjustments, but Oregon is losing four all at once. That’s an overwhelming challenge for Altman in his attempt to continue what he started and build on last season’s Final Four run.
Will Succeed If…
Frontcourt solutions emerge. The main thing to note with the Oregon frontcourt is that both Boucher and Bell were very long and blessed with great leaping ability. They blocked or deterred many shots near the rim, and one thing to keep in mind about defense is that while blocked shots look good on film, a big defensive effect is causing offensive players to not even attempt many shots. Oregon did that a lot last season, and that’s where the Ducks will be severely lacking this season. Finding some way to cobble together enough frontcourt help, especially on defense, can enable Oregon to exceed expectations. A lack of interior defense will leave this team in peril throughout a Pac-12 season that figures to be very challenging, especially against Arizona’s size.
Won’t Succeed If…
The Ducks can’t find 3-point shooting to compensate for their lack of defensive strength. Dylan Ennis is another player the Ducks lost from last season’s team. Ennis, Dorsey and Brooks all hit big three-point shots at various points in a run to the Final Four. Oregon’s offense played well on the nights when the defense was not at its best. This coming season, the offense will probably need to bail out the defense more often, and Ennis was a big part of the Ducks’ ability to get clutch baskets while forcing defenses to extend to the perimeter to guard the three. Without replacement three-point shooters this season, the team will slide in a big way.
Roster
Troy Brown
Kenny Wooten
Payton Pritchard
M.J. Cage
Elijah Brown
Victor Bailey Jr.
Keith Smith
Paul White
Evan Gross
Mikyle McIntosh
Abu Kigab
Roman Sorkin
Will Johnson
Schedule & Outlook
The Ducks will mostly have a breeze through the non-conference portion of their schedule. They won’t have any teams that are currently ranked in the Top 25. Their biggest test figures to come in a neutral site game with Connecticut, but the Huskies have fallen off a bit. They’ll also play Boise State and Fresno State, but those schools are not power houses.
The Ducks will be near the NCAA Tournament bubble this season because of the depth and extent of their losses. Altman, though, is a master at finding ways to piece together a lineup. Oregon won’t play deep into March, but Altman is probably good enough to get the Ducks into the 68-team field.
The 2018 March Madness futures are out. There has been plenty of news to keep up with in the offseason but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest college basketball betting lines right here.
