On Monday, Nov. 7, the 2016 Oregon men’s basketball season will officially be underway.
The opponent, Northwest Christian University, should be a walk in the park for the Ducks, but the game will signify something much greater than a typical season opener.
The Ducks are ranked in the top 10 of five different preseason polls, reaching as high as No. 1 in Lindy’s Sports’ college basketball rankings and No. 2 in Chris Dortch’s rankings. Oregon also checks in at No. 4 in USA TODAY and Bleacher Report’s rankings and No. 8 in the CBS Sports poll.
The Ducks return six of their top eight players from last year’s Elite Eight squad that went 31-7 overall en route to winning the Pac-12 regular season and tournament championships.
Although Oregon lost senior leader Elgin Cook and versatile forward Dwayne Benjamin, the Ducks should be just fine with the return of the three-headed offensive monster: Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey and Chris Boucher. Add in Jordan Bell, Casey Benson, Dylan Ennis and four-start recruit Payton Pritchard, and the Ducks should be deeper and more athletic than last year’s squad.
With two-time reigning Pac-12 Coach of the Year Dana Altman at the helm, the Ducks look to have their best shot in years at an NCAA Championship in April.
But even with a stacked roster and renowned head coach, is Oregon’s hype truly justified? Or is it just as it reads, preseason hype?
There’s no doubt Oregon will have an array of offensive weapons at its disposal, but with any Altman-coached team, defense will be the primary focus. That’s where the loss of Cook and Benjamin could hurt the Ducks.
Both players were rangy 6-foot-7 defenders who had the quickness to defend guards and strength to defend posts, a necessity in today’s game. Besides Brooks, the Ducks could have trouble finding bodies on the roster who can do what Cook and Benjamin did for the defense.
Oregon may also find trouble balancing the depth at the point guard position. Benson returns as the floor leader after leading the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio last year (4.88) and playing in Altman’s system for three years. Ennis is coming off a foot injury, but provides the scoring punch Benson lacks. Incoming freshman Payton Pritchard is Oregon’s highest-rated recruit and should see the court right away based on pure talent and ability. Add in Dorsey, Oregon’s biggest and most NBA-ready guard, and the Ducks have a logjam at that position. Altman could have a tough time finding time for each of them to shine.
Brooks, who is widely considered a contender for national player of the year, will begin the season on the bench. He is nursing a foot injury and will miss some time after not playing all summer. It could be awhile before he returns and might take extra time to get back to form.
Oregon does have a favorable schedule, including Arizona visiting Matthew Knight Arena, but the ultimate success of the team will depend on how Altman and the Ducks sort out the pending questions. The Ducks have the potential to play deep into March, but given the hype, anything short of that could be considered a disappointment.
Follow Ryan Kostecka on Twitter @Ryan_Kostecka