We know it’s early, but look who is the Pac-12 favorite as we sit here at the beginning of summer. With the return of Dillon Brooks and Tyler Dorsey, it is none other than Dana Altman’s Oregon Ducks.
Both Brooks and Dorsey tested the NBA Draft waters thanks to new NCAA rules allowing players to maintain their eligibility despite going through much of the pre-draft process–so long as they didn’t hire an agent. In the end, neither Brooks nor Dorsey heard the kind of news that would have convinced them to hire an agent and make their spot in the field of NBA Draft participants official.
Most projections had each player firmly out of the first round, with many even having both Ducks go undrafted. How would two vital players for one of college basketball’s best teams be so far off the draft radar?
For Brooks, much of uncertainty regarding his NBA future revolves around him being a bit of a tweener. He’s not nearly quick enough to play shooting guard in the NBA–as well, he shoots below 34-percent from three in college–and at just 6-foot-6, he’s not big enough to consistently muscle NBA small forwards. For Dorsey, there are similar athletic concerns. Can he get to the basket against NBA point guards? Can he defend anyone? Both do certain things very, very well, but those things translating to taking someone’s spot on an NBA team is a completely different story.
Regardless of their NBA fortunes, both Brooks and Dorsey returning to college make Oregon the unquestioned Pac-12 favorite for next season and a true threat for a Final Four berth.
