Men’s College Basketball 2021-2022 Season Preview: Oregon Ducks

The Pac-12 doesn’t get a whole lot of respect in college basketball lately, but that’s the conference’s own fault, as it’s been a fairly pathetic conference over the last couple of seasons. Many of the teams took advantage of the largest transfer portal ever, and we will see a lot of new faces this season. There will be plenty of hype surrounding the UCLA Bruins after their unlikely final four run last year while teams like Oregon, Arizona and USC try to gain relevance once more. There is plenty of excitement surrounding the WSU Cougars and their juicy roster, but the amount of projected bottom feeders could lead to another disappointing season for the Pac-12.

Nevertheless, there will be firepower on each of these rosters and Pac-12 Thursday DFS slates tend to be some of the most chaotic of the week. Let’s break down each team and identify the players to watch for this upcoming season.

In this one, Oregon.

(Check out our full college basketball season preview!)

Oregon Ducks 2021-2022 Season Preview

2020-2021 record: 21-7 (14-4 Pac-12), first in Pac-12
Postseason: Lost in NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen

Key Departures | Oregon Ducks

• Eugene Omoruyi (playing professionally)
• Chris Duarte (NBA draftee)
• LJ Figueroa (playing professionally)
• Amauri Hardy (playing professionally)
• Chandler Lawson (transferred to Memphis)
• Jalen Terry (transferred to DePaul)

Key Additions | Oregon Ducks

• Quincy Guerrier (transferred from Syracuse)
• De’Vion Harmon (transferred from Oklahoma)
• Jacob Young (transferred from Rutgers)
• Rivaldo Soares (JUCO transfer)
• Nate Bittle (top 30 recruit)

Returners | Oregon Ducks

• Eric Williams (10 PPG/6 RPG/1.6 APG)
• Will Richardson (11.3 PPG/3.4 RPG/3.9 APG/1.1 SPG)
• N’Faly Dante (8.2 PPG/5.8 RPG1.5 SPG/1.2 BPG)
• Franck Kepnang (2.6 PPG/1.1 BPG)

Oregon Ducks Outlook for 2021-2022

Oregon had an impressive season last year, and despite suffering through multiple injuries and COVID-19 issues to key players, the Ducks were able to come away as the Pac-12 regular season champions. This will be an interesting year for the Ducks, as they lose staples like Duarte, Figs and Omoruyi to the pros. They’ve brought in some solid players to replace them but I’m on the fence if they’re going to be as good as they were last year. With a coach like Dana Altman, they’ll always be in the mix though.

A healthy Will Richardson will be key this year for getting all the new pieces to gel. He had an 18.9% assist rate in 2020 and that number figures to be much higher this year. Eric Williams (7.3% offensive rebounding rate) and N’Faly Dante (26.6% defensive rebounding rate and 7.7% block rate) return to lead a deep front court. Both missed time last year due to various ailments so once again their health will be important for this team going forward.

Since Altman has an embarrassment of riches at his disposal in the frontcourt, he can afford to take his time with 5-star center Nate Bittle’s development. They won’t want to wait too long though as Bittle actually has really good ball handling skills for his size and can even step out to knock down triples.He gives them an added dimension that they just don’t get with a traditional big like Dante.

Quincy Guerrier was an amazing addition through the portal and will help lessen the blow of losing Omo and Figs. Guerrier can do a little bit of everything and averaged 13.7 PPG/8.4 RPG/1.1 BPG. Jacob Young was a key get late and can provide the team with an instant offense option off the bench or as a spot starter if Richardson runs into the injury bug again. Young was a high usage 14.1 PPG scorer while at Rutgers and I can see him pushing the Ducks along during offensive droughts. De’Vion Harmon is a juggernaut of a defender and makes his living handcuffing the opposing teams lead perimeter scorer. He can also run the offense when needed.

(Check out our rankings of the top 100 teams and top 100 players for men’s college basketball in 2021-2022.)

Summary

Overall, I think the Ducks offense clearly took a hit, but they’ve brought in players who are an ideal fit for Dana Altman’s system. By the end of the year, I still expect this team to be near the top of the conference assuming they do in fact stay healthy. Keep an eye on the dynamic between Bittle and Dante, as there is a very real possibility they see the floor together at times. That will cause matchup nightmares for opponents on the defensive side of the ball.