Basketball Evalutions

The season should be viewed as a success because the end result on the outside was a birth back the NCAA tournament and placed with a game that Oregon should win or should be in contention to win the game based on the seed they got. However, looking more in-depth at the talent and the players returning from an elite 8 run which ended in a loss to eventual national champs, Florida, Oregon’s season will be viewed as a disappointment. Yes Oregon got back to the NCAA’s after going the year before and it being one in only a handful of seasons where the Ducks make it back to back, but there should have been more to the season than 18 wins, a tie for 5^th place in the Pac-10 with a 9-9 record, and a loss in the first round of the dance. Many were expecting the Ducks to finish with a top four seed in the tournament as Oregon entered the season ranked 12^th and 13^th in the AP and ESPN polls and bringing four out of five starters from last years team with three seniors starting. What led to this lack of success and an early exit in the NCAA tournament? Lack of in game coaching, lack of clutch plays, no go to scorer, lack of senior leadership, and injuries all played an equal role none more important than the others. When a team wins the coach is given the full credit of leading his team to victory and success and when that team losses the coach takes on the same credit in the loss. Sadly, on paper that’s all there is to blame or credit, the coach, when in reality there are a lot of other factors into the final outcome. That’s not the case; however so this lack of success must fall onto someone’s shoulders and that has to be Head Coach Ernie Kent.

Player Evaluations:

Maarty Leunen Grade: A

Clearly the most improved player from last season as Maarty Leunen finished the season first in rebounding (9.2pg), minutes played (34.7pg), steals (0.9pg), and 3-Point shooting percentage (49%). He finished second on the team in points (15.2), assists (2.8), and free throw percentage (79%). Leunen also finished the season with the second highest points per shot at 1.73, and trailed only Ray Schafer who played in six games all season long. Leunen improved in almost every category on the stat sheet every season and finished with his best season at Oregon with his last as he made the 2^nd team all Pac-10 and was the only Duck to make such a team for All-Pac-10. Matching up against players grossly heavier and taller than himself, Leunen took it upon himself to hold the fort down low and not only get by but to excel while playing out of position almost every game. Leunen’s best games came against some of the best players in the nation. Leunen scored 14 points and grabbed 14 rebounds with six coming on offense, while adding four assists and one blocked shot against Kansas State and All American and Freshmen of the Year Michael Beasley on November 29^th on the road. In the Pac-10 Home Opener for the Ducks against Cal, Leunen scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, three assists, and one steal while facing 1^st team All Pac-10 forward Sophomore Ryan Anderson on January 10^th. Amid a four game losing streak you can find another gem put in by Leunen when he put up 20 points, 13 rebounds, two assists, one steal while playing 37 minutes on January 20^th. His best performance came when he shot the ball the least out of all his best games yet played an almost perfect game of basketball as Leunen scored 12 points, 15 rebounds with 13 on defense alone, four assists, and shooting four of seven from the field and two of three from the 3-Point shot in a must win game in the last game of the regulars season against Arizona on March 8^th. In his last season as a Duck, Leunen moved himself deeper into the Oregon record books in Scoring, Steals, Rebounds, 3 Point Shooting Percentage top 10. Luenen capped the season off winning the team’s Most Valuable Player award at the end of season awards. Leunen entered the season with little to no chance to getting drafted by an NBA team and most likely being forced to play overseas or in the NBDL if he wished to play pro ball. After his senior season Leunen showed he had more to his game many scouts and fans knew about and given workouts with the right team he should find himself getting drafted in the middle to late second round of the upcoming draft.

Malik Hairston Grade A-

Arguably the most highly touted recruit to ever come to Oregon in modern day basketball Malik finished his last season playing at the level many were expecting him to play in his entire career at Oregon let alone his last season at Oregon. Clearly marked with too much hype coming into college Hairston will go down as one of the greatest players to put on the green and yellow for Oregon. Having graduated before the season even started Hairston’s mind was on basketball and basketball only for his final season where he played the small forward position along with time at the power forward position for Oregon. Hairston was in the same situation as Leunen where he was forced to play at times out of his position due to the lack of big men on the Oregon roster and was matched up at times in every game against a player taller and stronger than Hairston. However, Hairston was able to use his agility and quickness mixed with his inside toughness to create match up problems for opposing coaches and players. Hairston led the Ducks in scoring (16.3ppg) and Blocks (0.8pg). Hairston finished second on the team in three point percentage (43%) and points per shot (1.51) while placing third in rebounds (4.8), fourth in minutes played (31.5) and steals (0.6). Malik’s best games of the season came against Arizona in an early must win situation on the road in early January to avoid the sweep as he recorded 29 points on 11 for 14 shooting, six rebounds, one steal, and one assist. His next great game came at the expense to UCLA in a loss in which Malik Hairston was unstoppable for UCLA defenders until he suffered cramps early in the second half and limited him to playing only 25 minutes, yet Hairston recorded 18 points, three rebounds while going 8-13 from the field. The loss of Malik in the second to cramps is the stem of the Oregon collapse and eventual loss to UCLA. Down in L.A. against USC Hairston again showed his ability to become unstoppable ending the game with 17 points, four rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block, all while shooting six of nine from the field. A common trait of the season Malik couldn’t get help from his teammates and the team let a big lead slip away in the 2^nd half to lose to USC. Entering his final home stand in Eugene, Malik showed up big against ASU as he guided Oregon to a win with 19 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two blocks while shooting seven of nine from the field in the must win game for the Ducks. Malik ended his career as a Duck with a bang in the NCAA tournament as he went up against Mississippi’s heralded big men that were clearly bigger and stronger than he was. Against tough defense from the Bulldog front line Malik finished the game with 22 points, seven rebounds, and one steal before he fouled out as he tried to carry the Ducks on his back at the end of the game. Hairston’s senior season was one many wont forget for a long time due to himself being healthy for almost the entire season and finally playing at a high level many were hoping he would show earlier in his career. Hairston finished his senior season and career deeper into Oregon All Time records in Scoring, Blocks, and Shooting Percentage. Malik Hairston, like his senior teammates will go down in Oregon Duck history as the recruits that raised expectations of the program simply by signing with Oregon and then with their play on the court, and ending with the huge roles in signing the next big recruiting class for Oregon. Malik’s draft stock most likely will take a hit from where he was at after the end of his junior season, but a healthy Hairston given a chance to workout for NBA teams in the spring will surely find himself getting drafted somewhere in the mid to early second round of the draft.

Bryce Taylor Grade B

Midway through his freshmen year at Oregon many fans were wondering if Taylor was the better freshmen when compared with Hairston. With a terrible sophomore slump that Duck fans saw Taylor struggle in all areas of his game he bounced back big time with a very good junior year that propelled him back into the 1^st round of the NBA draft going into his senior season where Taylor looked to improve his draft stock and move into the middle of the first round or become a late lottery pick. However with a late injury compounded with a very inconsistent and sub-par senior season Taylor’s draft stock took a huge nose dive and Taylor might not be a 1^st round draft pick anymore, and instead be a middle 2^nd round pick. The loss of Aaron Brooks at point guard might have had the biggest impact on Taylor due to shaky guard play and lack of penetration that provided good match ups for Taylor on the wing. Taylor was forced to create more shots on his own all while still garnishing the responsibility of guarding the other team’s best scorer on the outside. With an increase in talent for the Pac-10 it’s fair to say his focus on defense against players like Derek Low, OJ Mayo, Josh Shipp, and Jerryd Bayless forced Taylor to let his offensive game to slip in order to play better defense throughout the entire Pac-10 season. Still Oregon was expecting more from this senior leader and it played a role in the lack of success for the entire team. Taylor was first in Free Throw Percentage (82%), second on the team in minutes played (33.1), steals (0.7), third Three Point Percentage (38%), Points Per Shot (1.31), and Blocks (0.4BPG). Across the stat sheet Taylor saw almost all his stats take a drop and at times nose dive in production compared to his stellar junior season. Taylor’s scoring dipped almost two points from last season along with his rebounds, steals, assists, and blocks. Taylor’s shooter percentages also all dropped significant numbers compared to last year. Taylor had a very good season with his best games coming against Cal for the season. In the first match up at home in early January Taylor finished the game with 20 points, four rebounds, two blocks, and one assist on the night. In the second go around Taylor responded with a season high in points scoring 28 and adding three rebounds, two assists, and one steal while shooting 10 of 13 from the field. Taylor’s production went down and most noticeably was his scoring. In out of conference games Taylor averaged 13.8 points in 10 games. Once conference play started, Taylor’s scoring dropped down to 12.35 a game, and slid even more in the final 12 games of the season as he finished scoring 11.43 points per game in the last 12. Taylor still had a productive year for most players in the conference and nation; just not the type of season Oregon was expecting and needing to have from Taylor in order to finish the season off strong. Taylor will go down as one of Oregon’s best lock down defenders and purest shooters in Oregon history. He was in the records for points scored and steals. With a couple of months for Taylor to rest his injuries and prep for NBA draft camps Taylor should he perform to the level he played at the start of this past season and the end of his Junior year he should still land an early second to middle second round draft selection, and most likely be the third Duck drafted in the second round of this years draft.

Tajuan Porter Grade B

Porter excelled as a off guard last season with senior Aaron Brooks running the point freeing up the freshmen sniper to rain bombs against defenses from outside on way to an Elite 8 finish for the Ducks. With Brooks graduated and a freshmen point guard coming into the program head coach Ernie Kent was forced to move sophomore Porter to the point even if it wasn’t Porter’s best position on the team and run the offense for the Ducks this season. It was expected his scoring would drop off but with three senior starters back from last years squad scoring would not be an issue for the Ducks. Porter’s scoring did drop but not that much as expected as Porter was Oregon’s third leading scorer as he averaged 13.9 a game and only 0.7 points below last years average while also shooting less threes than he did the year before. Porter brought more assists this year at 2.4 a game, which was third on the team and actually 0.4 up from where he was at last year as a freshmen. He cut his Turnovers as a PG down 13 from last year as he turned the ball over 75 times this year for a tie with Freshman Kamyron Brown at 2.4 a game. Porter’s shooting percentage was way down from last year’s high mark as Porter shot the ball 39% from the field is sophomore year but it was clear he was focused on more by opposing team’s defenses instead of having the ability to feed off of Brooks last year as a freshmen. Porter still shot free throws well and was third on the team as he made 79% of his attempts. Porter was at his best this season in both Non-Conference games and Conference games. In the first game of the year against Pepperdine Porter finished the blow out win with 17 points, nine assists, five rebounds, two blocks, and one steal. Against UCLA at home Porter recorded one of his best games as a point guard against one of the best defensive guards in the conference against Collison when Porter went for 13 points, six assists to one turnover, and one rebound. He backed that game up against USC and their athletic and taller guards with another great game at the point when he chipped in 17 points, six assists and one turnover, five rebounds, and one steal. He finished the regular season on fire in the big win against Arizona when he scored 24 points and at one point taking over the game and going on one of his famous back to back to back scoring runs from deep. He added two assists and one steal in that game. Porter clearly struggled and succeeded at the point this season as he and the rest of the Ducks tried to adjust to him running the offense. At times it didn’t seem like he would ever get it, which led to him being benched and regulated to coming off the bench. Other times it looked as if he played great and if he could play like that every game Oregon would be a top ten team again. However the experiment at PG has been canceled per the head coach, Kent, unless freshmen Brown or someone else can’t run the point. Instead Porter will slide back over to his natural off guard position in which he was let loose and able to thrive coming off screens and roaming the parameter to nail the open jump shots. Porter has shown he can run the point when the starter needs rest or is in foul trouble, but he shouldn’t be counted on to be the primary point for this team coming back next season as a junior. Porter is only 48 points shy of joining the 1,000 point club in Oregon history and if Porter can again score in the 400 range he has a great shot at being a top 10 scorer all time and putting himself in a situation for a senior season that Oregon fans might see him become Oregon’s All Time Leading Scorer. Porter will be expected to lead an unusual very young squad for Oregon in recent times as a team leader on and off the floor next season.

Joevan Catron Grade B-

Catron came on late in the season of his freshmen year to start providing an instant spark off the bench for the Ducks and looked to continue that same role, doing all the dirty work, for the Ducks as a sophomore that was inserted into the starting lineup for the first time. Catron responded well as a starter for the Ducks as a sophomore giving Oregon a big man that gave the Ducks a sense of an inside threat with his footwork and quickness inside against bigger defenders. Catron saw almost double the amount of minutes per game as a sophomore compared to his freshmen season and in result saw all his stats skyrocket up and he become a solid player for Oregon. Catron finished the season averaging 8.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists a game while shooting 51% from the field and 36% from three points. Catron suffered an injury that was similar to the type of injury that Hairston suffered the year before on the foot and required Catron to miss the first six games of the Pac-10 season. Before the injury Catron was averaging nearly 11 points, eight rebounds, and two assists a game before the injury with a high of 20 points in one game. After the injury Catron had struggles to get back into shape that he was in before the season started and then he ran into a playing rotation that saw freshmen Drew Viney get back into the lineup and was seeing some of his minutes go to him as well. After the injury Catron averaged seven points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2 assists a game. His rebounding and scoring took a hit with his injury and was compounded by falling out of shape and not being able to keep up anymore. Catron was a still very solid for Oregon but nowhere near his level of play prior to injury. Because of his injury Oregon’s coaching staff and fans haven’t seen the best from Catron yet. Another off-season dedicated towards losing weight and becoming more lean muscular wise with more attention to his low post game and footwork with added time towards rebounding on both ends and Catron could develop into our next go to scorer and leader of this team as a junior. The off-season following this season will be crucial for Catron as Oregon is bringing in a McDonald’s All-American center in Michael Dunigan and another bruiser and friend of Catron in Josh Crittle who both will be battling along with current teammate Franz Dorsainvil for playing time at the four and five spots for Oregon next year.

LeKendric Longmire Grade B-

Longmire quickly came onto the scene for Oregon as he scored 12 points in his first game for Oregon. However, like a freshmen, Longmire experienced the highs and lows of a freshmen season. One game Longmire played great defense and gave hustle and grit on offense and got some points that resulted from him simply out hustling his defender and then the next game Longmire would commit the freshmen mistakes every freshmen would make. He demanded more minutes early on than he got and his development hindered from the lack of playing time, however Oregon was quickly in a dog fight all season to stay in contention for an NCAA tournament birth and Ernie Kent wasn’t blessed with games on the schedule where he could risk playing Longmire many minutes until he showed in practice and games he deserved more minutes. Ah, the life of a freshmen. Had Oregon’s season gone as many experts predicted and Oregon was always a lock to make the dance and Oregon was able to get more blowout wins Longmire most certainly would have seen the floor in less pressure packed situations and his development would have come along quicker. Longmire’s best games came late in the year when he seemed to have found his niche for the team, hustle on offense, play smart, and be a lock down defender that his athleticism allowed him to be. With Longmire finding his role and more importantly the desire to be the best defender on the team, Longmire started seeing more minutes and his production skyrocketed. In his last seven games Longmire averaged 17 minutes a game and gave Oregon 6.2 points and many more plays that didn’t land on the stat sheet. He averaged a few clips above his averages for steals, field goal percentage, and he rebounding. His best game of the year came in the last of the regular season against Arizona. Longmire drew the assignment of being the spark plug off the bench and to play lights out defense on Jerryd Bayless. Not only did he hustle and make plays on offense but he got into the head of the freshmen sensation and caused Bayless to get into early foul trouble and he knocked him off his game and Bayless wasn’t the same player after getting into foul trouble. Longmire provided Ernie Kent and staff a glimpse of what he could turn into at the end of the year with an off-season dedicated towards getting better on his jump shot and continuing to improve on his defense on ball and off ball. Kent has already labeled Longmire as a potential player that could become a team leader for the Ducks and to garnish such an assignment for a player with limited experience bodes well for his character and his potential. Longmire will enter next season as the team’s best defender on ball and will most likely be the leading candidate going into camp as one of the replacements for one of the departing seniors.

Kamyron Brown Grade C+

Brown entered the Oregon program as a freshmen that was expected to be able to contribute from day one for the Ducks and be the 6^th man for Oregon off the bench. He however came a year late for what Oregon’s coach, Ernie Kent, wanted from him. It is a shame because in the past Kent hasn’t been able to land that big point guard recruit before his current star leaves the program. Brown was expected to bridge the gap with Porter that Aaron Brooks left as a senior the year before. Understandable if Porter was capable to be the starter full time at Point and allow Brown to be eased into the program and to learn the ins and outs of the offense and defense. However Porter clearly was not the answer and Brown wasn’t up to standards to be relied upon on a nightly basis to play major minutes for Oregon. Thus Oregon got spotty point guard play at times during the season. Like Longmire Brown showed glimpses of being that next great point guard for Oregon and at times he showed Kent and Oregon fans he wasn’t quiet ready for the prime time. Brown really hindered his development when he injured himself playing rec ball and then getting into academic problems with Kent. His lack of play starting in the middle of the season really killed any progress he was making early in the season. Brown would could have used those minutes he was getting earlier in the year during the second half of the season and so could have Oregon. However he didn’t show the maturity off the court and the court awareness to allow Kent to give him more minutes when Oregon needed to focus more so on getting into the NCAA tournament. The lack of playing time would squarely fall onto Brown’s responsibility since it was himself that put him in Kent’s doghouse. The off-season will be big again for this freshmen as Brown looks to be challenged by Kent to assume the leadership role of this team and to run the point and thus push Porter back to his natural spot at the off guard. Brown needs to improve on his jumpshot from the outside, because until he develops the outside J defenses wont honor his shooting and will slack off and prevent him from using his great speed and quickness to blow by his defender. Brown will also need to improve on his decision making as he made many bone headed plays that were too fancy after he just made a great pass the possession earlier.

Mitch Platt Grade C

Coming into Oregon Mitch Platt was expected to provide Oregon an instant post presence and demand defenses to ease up on the attention given to the Oregon guards because of his scoring ability. IN Platt’s first ten games of his Oregon career, Platt was demanding some attention and forcing defenses to focus on an aspect of the game Oregon didn’t have in years past. He injured his foot that year and then re-injured it again a few years down the road and Platt was never the same player he was as he came into the Oregon program. Going into his senior year, Platt wasn’t a player many people would expect to give good minutes off the bench, yet at times Mitch Platt showed glimpses of his old self from his freshmen year and at times even raised question if he should see more minutes on the court. Platt’s highest scoring output of the season was six points, in which he did that twice. However it was the added spark off the bench and the sound defense when in that gave Platt more minutes opposed to years past. His career as a Duck shouldn’t be labeled a total failure when compared to expectations that were placed on him out of high school due to the amount of injuries and the severity that those injuries played on his mobility and conditioning in his game.

Drew Viney Grade C

Drew Viney entered the Oregon program this season amid some off court issues that came up with his high school basketball coach and in result many fans were wondering if Viney would be a head case or a kid placed in a bad situation in high school when you looked back at his coach kicking him off the team. Some fans were a tad disappointed in the fact that Oregon coach Ernie Kent was bringing in such a person to a program that needed to continue to bring in high character guys that were talented. Viney quickly showed it was just a bad situation as he earned the praise from his peers and more importantly Ernie Kent. Kent labeled Viney as the most athletic player on the squad, even over the three highly touted seniors. He came with a hint of lazyness in his work ethic; partially coming from the fact while in high school Viney could rely on pure athleticism to beat is players. At Oregon Viney will need skill and athleticism to excel at the high level. Viney showed his quickness in the front court against bigger defenders and his nice shooting touch from outside. It quickly became clear that Viney was indeed a player Oregon coaches could count on to be a high level player and produce good minutes on the court for the Ducks. An early season injury forced Viney to only get in on 12 games this season, 11 of the 12 coming in the last 11 games of the season. His development as a freshmen clearly was hindered by the injury as Oregon coaches saw his quick progress on the court once he got back. Viney will simply need more minutes on the floor and a continued dedication to working hard in the off season in all aspects of his game as he looks to land a starting spot in next years squad. He will be relied upon heavily to add scoring and rebounding next season as the Ducks lose three out of their four top scorers. An added commitment to the weights will go along way for Viney. If Viney can bulk up and become stronger he will expand his areas of position that he could play for Kent and his high octane offense next season.

Churchill Odia Grade C

Odia once again showed he can be that solid role player off the bench that doesn’t make mistakes and will play good defense. Like last season, Odia wasn’t counted on to score when on the court, but instead to be another point guard along with the current guard and to play good defense. Seeing the floor more his junior season compared to his sophomore year raised the question if Odia could become a starter for Oregon. He ended up starting a couple of games in the middle of the season and as usual provided good defense and sound decision making on offense. If Odia develops a consistent jump shot and can become more of a scorer he will be the leading candidate to land one of the open starting spots next season. With his long frame and solid quickness, Odia would provide Oregon with a threat on offense many defenses would struggle against. However, until Odia develops a better scoring threat he won’t see more playing time than he got this season.

Franz Dorsainvil Grade D+

Dorsainvil was billed as a player who could have played in the short rotation of Oregon’s elite 8 run last year and came into the Oregon program this season billed as the final piece to the Oregon roster in hopes of making another great run in the NCAA Tournament. Dorsainvil however wasn’t up to speed on Oregon’s offense and defense along with being grossly out of shape as he tipped the scale as being over 300 pounds in the summer. He showed decent moves inside on offense but couldn’t keep up on defense and quickly found himself in Coach Kent’s doghouse where he never was able to work himself out of. Dorsainvil needs to improve on his defense, transition game, and add a few more post moves if he wants to see the floor next season. If Franz can do all of these requirements along with getting into better shape Dorsainvil may challenge incoming Freshmen Michael Dunigan for the starting center position.

Ray Schafer D+

Coming into his senior season Schafer was placed with the tough understanding that he wouldn’t see much playing time as a senior if any at all. He got in only six games all year, as he simply wasn’t good enough on both ends of the floor for Oregon to play him major minutes. He however was a valuable asset in the lockeroom and as a player who played minutes against some of the best big men in the nation and was able to give Oregon a look in practice many teams couldn’t give.

Coach Kent Grade B-

Coming into the season Kent knew the loss of Brooks from last year’s team elite 8 team would be a big loss. Kent was counting on the three big seniors to lead the team and bring Oregon back to the Elite 8 for a second year in a row. However, Kent failed to guide the seniors and the rest of the team to develop their own unity and have the new leaders show themselves. He technically had a good season, as the Ducks made the NCAA Tournament back to back seasons, second for Kent, and third time overall for the Ducks History. However, there was more expected from Kent and his Ducks this season and that should be viewed as a failure. Kent struggled to get the Ducks to play the great defense that they played the previous year and he struggled again in developing solid point guard play that is needed to run his high pace high octane offense. Kent is off the hot seat for now but instead is placed on the back burner. Kent cant have teams that under achieve like this past season on a regular basis if he is finally going to have new and improved practice and game facilities.

Duck Fans Get First Look At Dunigan

Its a little unfair to judge his potential and his play based on an All Star game that guards thrive in because of the pro guard shoot first me first type attitude that is seen in most of the players. After watching the first five minutes of the game and waiting for Dunigan to come in I decided to instead not count how many points he had but to see what little things he did well because clearly the guards were not trying to go to their advantage, their bigs, and instead hoisted a ton out wild shots from inside and the outside.


Some things I thought Dunigan did well:

1. Established good post position. Every time down I was screaming in my mind to get him the ball because he pinned his man and had great post position for a nice hook or dunk.

2. Clearly knows how to block shots as I saw him get around 4 or 5 swats against some of the best players in the nation for his class. Thats something we have never had. He will be greatly loved for his blocks alone if he gets even half that each game next season.

3. Soft hands. He caught the ball really well in transition a few times and also on some nice passes down low to him. Thats a must for the Pac-10 and in EK's system.

4. He moves very well in the half court and shows he can get up and down the court. Now I think we saw him lolly gag down a few times but thats due to him being frustrated in how he works hard for position to only see a guard jack up a stupid shot trying to be the man.

5. Knows how to run the pick and roll. Ernie Kent is big on the pick and roll or pick and pop so having him already knowing how to run it right will be a huge plus.

6. Very very wide body, which is something we have not had in a very very very long time. I kept thinking of the Suns and how I still haven't adjusted to watching Shaq play for the suns when I was watching Dunigan. Not saying he will be like Shaq or even close, but its going to be a strange thing to watch us have a guy pin his guy in the paint get the ball down low and throw it down hard on the guys face. Should be a fun 3 years with him.


Now for the things he didn't do well:

1. He didn't seem very interested in trying to get rebounds or even blocking out. Now that might be his conditioning or his lack of desire due to the style of rat ball that was being played, but thats how I saw it.

2. At times he gave up running down the court for defense or offense and seem not interested. Again this could be due to style of play going on.

3. I was expecting a more athletic big man than what I saw. Now I probably just had envisioned him to be better than he is and hopefully I am right but I was expecting him to be more face up and post up game. I still will take just a post up game.


All in all Dunigan had a solid game when he saw the floor. He scored 6 points on 3-3 shooting and added a few rebounds and a couple of blocked shots to go wtih it. He was a force in the paint as he altered a ton of shots when he was in the game, but could never get into the flow of the game as it was clearly a guards game tonight. I won't be basing a ton of stock in the play simply because it was an All-Star Game and in most games the big men of both teams don't represent well due to the sloppy play and me first attitudes of the guards.

Seeing how large and talented Dunigan is down low Duck fans have a very special player coming to Eugene in the summer to man the center spot. A player Oregon hasn't seen in a very long time in that Dunigan's best style of play is with his back to the basket and he pin his defender with his wide body and grab a deep low post presence and demand the ball.

Oregon Gets Surprise Visit For Basketball

John Wall, from Raleigh, NC visited Oregon March 8th when the Ducks faced the Arizona Wildcats at home. Wall, is considered to be one of the top point guard prospects in the nation according to both Scout.com and Rivals.com

Wall is a 6'4 PG that can play both the point and also slide over to the shooting guard spot and give his team two ball handlers on the floor at the same time. Wall led his high school team to back to back state championships in North Carolina. He currently has no favorites officially but reading his comments about schools Texas, North Carolina, and North Carolina State appear to be teams he is very interested in.

Wall's best abilities according to Scout.com are his ability to create his own shot and for his own teammates, finishing around the hoop, and his quickness and speed on the court. Scout.com lists his need to improve on his outside shooting, mid-range game, and the ability to change pace on the floor.

Wall currently has offers from Kentucky, Mempshis, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Indiana, Kansas, Miami, North Carolina State, Ohio State, and Oklahoma.

Early Thoughts On Starting 5 For Basketball Next Year

There are too many questions to be exactly sure on who starts and who gets minutes as of right now. However you can go back and look at the last few games of the season and see Kent starting to trust Longmire and Viney more and more and then there was the loss of playing time for Catron at the 4 spot. The group staying doesn’t have much star power that’s been seen on the court in Porter but does have the potential to have a few players improve over the summer and become good players in the Pac-10.

The freshmen class this past season came in with alot of talk and belief that they would be a very good class by the time they leave Oregon. We all saw the flashes from Viney, Brown, and Longmire here and there but now the coaches are going to need to see it on a nightly basis. Brown is a natural leader and lead his HS team for 3 years as they played some of the best teams in the nation let alone California. Viney was considered one of the best athletes on the west coast and Kent said he was flat out the most athletic player on the team this past season but showed stints of being lazy. As we all know Longmire has been labeled a great athlete that is a great slasher that can get to the hole. His shot needs some work in the off season but he can turn into a good outside shooter and thus enhance his game even more as he adds that dimension to his slashing attack style.

Going into the off season Brown needs to improve on his outside jump shot and having the confidence in hitting that outside jumper. He also needs to work on cutting down on the fancy plays and making the simple ones. Much like Ridnour his freshmen year, Brown struggled to make the adjustment in his passing as he cant get that tough pass through every time now like he did in High school.

Viney needs to bulk up and get used to playing with the guys. His game could be All-Pac-10 caliber if he can bulk up and become aggressive. Viney reminds me of a mixture of Luke Jackson and Maarty Leunen. He has the broad shoulders and the length of Maarty Leunen but the handles and the shooting of Luke Jackson. Now Viney wont be as good of a rebounder as Maarty but could be a very solid rebounder if he puts on the weight to play the SF/PF spots.

Longmire needs to continue to work on his defense. He will continue to see more and more time as long as he plays great defense. I thought he played great on ball defense when in the game but his off ball defense needs to be like it was when Oregon played Arizona and Longmire guarded Bayless. At times he showed he could be a shut down guy and then when his man didn’t have the ball he slacked off. HE also needs to work on his ball handling and his outside J and his free throws. His said to be a great high school scorer but in highschool he scored a majority of his points in our around the paint from the result of slashing and using his athleticism near the hoop.

As for the Starting 5, if the freshmen see the expected improvement we see when freshmen get their first full off-season in the program my starting five would go as followed:

PG-Brown 6’2 SO

Brown showed glimpses of top notch defense for a PG and as well as being able to score and drive on anyone at will. Brown wont be expected to be the scorer Oregon has had in the past at PG in Ridnour and Brooks but instead be a guard much like Darious Wright in Ernie Kent’s early years at Oregon. Play tough defense, set up the rest of the team , and knock down the open shots when presented with the open shot. Brown’s ability to drive the lane and draw the defense to the paint will result in lots of open looks from the 3 point line and also draw a defender away from the forwards and thus open up a lane for a dunk or low post finish. Getting any more than 7 points a game from Brown next season will be gravy but I expect Brown to be near or atop the leagues assist leader board while getting a steal or two a game.

SG-Porter 5’6 JR

The experiment at PG is over unless Brown doesn’t develop into the PG Kent and Oregon fans expect or Oregon doesn’t sign Brad Tinsley for the 08 class. Kent himself made mention of this in Sunday’s paper in the Register-Guard. Porter’s shooting percentage, Free throw percentage, three point percentage, and scoring all went down his sophomore season compared to his freshmen year. Porter clearly struggled with setting up his teammates and finding the right situation for himself to take over games and shoot the ball. When Porter did get hot this past season and went on those famous runs of consecutive baskets he was usually set up with an open 3 in transition or on a kick-out pass from someone driving. Rarely did he go on hot runs where he created his own shot. With Brown taking over the PG duties and Porter sliding over back to the SG spot he wont have to worry about setting up his teammates on a regular basis and go back to working from off ball screens and getting looks from Brown’s ability to drive and kick the ball back out. Brown also provides solid height while playing the point that will allow Brown to guard most of the SGs in the Pac-10.

SF-Longmire 6’5 SO

Longmire replaced Senior Bryce Taylor this past season as our best on ball defender and became the guy we needed late in the season to guard the other teams top scorer. The only thing holding Longmire back from the starting lineup was his lack of an offensive game. He scored all his points primarily off of hustle plays and other players setting him up for a lay in or an open jump shot. Longmire will spend lots and lots of time with coaches in the off-season on his shooting and his driving ability. He is one of the better athletes on the court and I envision Longmire to be very similar to Freddy Jones. Not the leaping ability of Jones but the ability to slash to the hoop with the ball and finish around the rim. Knock down the open 3 point shot but wont be the shooter that will shoot the ball much from outside, but instead do most of his work in the mid range area. His defense next year will be tops on the team and expected to go night in and night out guarding other teams top scorer.

PF-Viney 6’7 SO

Oregon fans didn’t see the full Drew Viney this past season as he was hurt very early on in the season and was able to play in 11 games as he came back from injury. Viney came in and drew the praise of the coaches and players as he was described to be the best athlete on the team and have the best stroke from outside out of anyone. Yes even Porter. As a freshmen Viney came into Oregon a little underweight but his length and his athleticism made up for it. With a full off-season to put on another 10 pounds of muscle Oregon fans have a chance to see a player that doesn’t come around very often at a school like Oregon. Like I said above Viney to me has a blend of Maarty Leunen and Luke Jackson in him. The length and broadness of Maarty with the handles and scoring ability of Jackson. At 6’7 and adding 10 pounds and becoming 220 Viney will have the height and weight to hold his own with almost every Pac-10 power forward in the league. Yes he will struggle against some teams like UW and Brockman and Wallace. In that type of match up we will see Longmire and Viney split time at SF. Being versatile will be the key for Viney. He will be an absolute mismatch on offense as other teams try to have a slower power forward guard him on the outside and or have a smaller wing guard him down low. Viney has the chance to become our leading scorer if he can stay healthy and add the needed weight that’s expected of him. In Kent’s system he used Malik at the PF spot last season and Oregon fans saw the Ducks make an Elite 8 run as Malik was a complete mismatch for every team we played at the 4.

C-Dunigan 6’10 FR

Dunigan will be the first true athletic back to the basket center Oregon and Kent have had in a very long time. Dunigan wont be expected to score many points on his own as his game still is a tad raw on the offensive end. He will get a lot of his points using his height and position against his defender by getting the offensive rebounds and going right back up with the Dunk. Dunigan will also see a lot of ally oops and passes inside the lane from Brown due to Brown’s ability to penetrate the lane and draw defenders to him. Dunigan will be a bigger force on Defense as his shot blocking ability will allow our wings to play tighter man to man and take more risks for getting that tip or steal and going for the fast break. Dunigan will hold the paint and I would expect Kent to run a lot of zone with Dunigan holding down the middle. Rebounds, blocked shots, and put backs will be his calling for the Ducks his freshmen year. Everything else will be gravy.

6^th Man- Catron 6’6 JR

Catron excelled as an energy guy off the bench his freshmen year and should do the same as a Junior. I wont view him as a non starter but as starter 4A because he will see lots of minutes on the court playing both the center and power forward spots as well as a few minutes at SF against bigger teams. Catron doesn’t have much of an offensive game outside of his few but very good post moves and instead scores lots of his points feeding off other players drawing defenders away from him. Catron is great at passing inside the lane and will be a guy that Kent will use when the team needs a spark to get everything going. I still expect Catron to log a little over or a little under 20 minutes a game.

7^th Man- Matthew Humphrey 6’5 FR

Humphrey has a shot at starting at the SF spot instead of Longmire if he can show he can be the good defender he was in high school but at the college level. Even though Longmire is our top defender he isn’t a top 5 defender in the league and that title is still very easily up for grabs for anyone who wants it. Humphrey will show his great outside shooting and be a lift off the bench as a freshmen. However, what makes Humphrey more valuable is his ability to dribble drive and create his own shot. At 6’5 he will have the size to play both SG and the SF for the Ducks. However being a freshmen at a spot where we have already a few returning players will land Humphrey on the bench to start the season off. He could very well work his way into the starting lineup as the season goes a long but going in he will be a very very good player coming off the bench for the Ducks.

8^th Man- Josh Crittle 6’8 FR

Crittle is as equally as important as Dunigan is in this incoming class. With Dunigan being the shot blocking center that he is he will most certainly have a lot of games being in foul trouble as he adjusts to playing in the Pac-10 and not in his high school league. Crittle will be key to come in the game at the mid break of the 1^st half and give Kent and Dunigan some time on the bench to rest and to stay out of foul trouble. Crittle brings a nastyness to our post game as he is almost the same weight as Dunigan yet a few inches shorter. Crittle will be a lot like Leon Powe or Jon Brockman is, where Crittle will be a force with his weight and power. Rebounding the basketball and getting put backs and playing good defense will be Crittle’s role on this team.

9^th Man- Ben Voogd 6’1 JR

We wont see many minutes from Voogd but he will play in most of the games for spot duty at PG to rest both Brown and Porter during each half. Porter and Voogd will split the role of Backup PG and Voogd will most likely see close to around 10 minutes a game. Simply playing good defense and setting up others will be Voogd’s job. Scoring wont be a primary job as there are plenty of other scorers on this team.

10^th Man- Churchill Odia 6’6 SR

Theres talk that Odia might not be back for his senior year due to his knees troubling him again this past season. There was mention of this situation coming up in the Sunday Register-Guard once again. Odia wont be counted for scoring but again like Voogd to provide senior leadership for the Ducks and to play solid Defense for the Ducks.

Tenondre Williams, Drew Wiley, and Franz Dorsainvil wont see much time next season IMO. Williams and Wiley could end up redshirting due to the log jam at the wing positions for Williams and the lack of strength and toughness for Wiley at the PF spot and the log jam at SF as well. If one of the two were to see more minutes than the other my guess will be Williams due to his higher level of athleticism and scoring ability than Wiley.

Brad Tinsley is the wild card for this team. A lot could change with Tinsley on this team but even if Tinsley does sign with the Ducks I don’t expect him to start at PG unless Brown doesn’t work out and I would believe the Ducks would try Porter there before Tinsley as well. Tinsley would most likely force Williams to redshirt as well with Wiley due to his ability to play both wing positions for the Ducks as well as the PG spot.

Duck's Lack Of Depth Cause Concerns

We are seeing the same problem we were seeing in football recruiting with Mike Bellotti and the football program now with the basketball program.

One great class does not make a great NCAA tournament team. We had one great class in the last 4 classes with Hairston, Taylor, and Maarty in 2004. You brought in 3 guys you could look at to be great scorers, defenders, and leaders. Their downfall was that from what we fans could see(as we don't know what goes on at practice or inside the locker rooms) these guys were not vocal leaders. They were not the guy that Aaron Brooks was the year before that slapped his hand and yelled "give me the damn ball". Or the guy to come up to a younger freshmen and say hey, just make the simple play and get me the ball. These guys were great team players and in the end that was their worst attribute. Too unselfish, always looked to make the extra pass most of the time. We saw flashes of selfishness in these guys down to the last game with Malik having the possessed look on his face and trying to take the game over. thats however what made things so frustrating with this group is that they showed that fire every once and awhile and then it went away.

In 2005 we followed that up with no recruits signed. Now thats partially due to the fact that we had no offers to give, but good programs don't put them in a situation where they don't have a signing period and not being able to bring in new blood.

2005 we signed an average class in getting Porter, Catron, and Longmire. Yes two of these guys are starters this past season but Catron wouldn't start for most Pac-10 teams but instead be a great player off the bench as an energy guy. Longmire is a great athlete but thats about it right now. He cant create his own shot and relies on rebounds or a good passer to set him up. He does play good defense but at the high level Oregon fans want to be at you cant play a player thats only good at defense and expect to win every game. Porter is the tricky one. Porter would start for alot other teams but the great ones like Duke, UCLA, Kansas, UA, Michigan State, he wouldn't start and in turn be that sniper that comes in off the bench for 15-20 minutes a game and be used to extend the defense and yet limit his defensive liability and his lack of PG abilities.

2006 we again signed an average class with Brown, Viney, and Dorsianvile. Dorsianvile wasn't ready to see the floor and do anything productive at all on both ends of the floor. You could contribute that to him having to wait over an entire year to get to Oregon due to immigration papers, but in the grand scheme of things it shouldn't matter if he was a great player. Viney has shown at times he could be a good player, and he was hurt, but when given time on the floor Viney showed he was a freshmen and was pushed around down low and shied away from contact much like a tentative freshmen would. Viney has a skill set where he could develop into a good player but for good programs you don't rely on a player who could develop into a good player down the road his first year. Brown again was a wild card much like Porter is. He is a great passer, yet tries to make things too fancy and "sexy" and that gets him into turning the ball over. He can't shoot the ball from outside if his life depended on it. Now I am 100% sure that will change as his time at Oregon comes to an end, but again good programs dont try to rely on someone right away when they have work to do in their games.

If Kent wants to keep his job secure he needs to do a better job recruiting over the years and not rely simply on one class. Look at the great programs and their recruiting over the years:

Duke made the top 10 in 2005, 2006, 2007. Duke always a top 4 seed.

Kansas had the 2nd best in 2004, best in 2005, and top ten in 2006. They are a favorite for the title and a #1 seed.

North Carolina had the 4th best in 2005 and had the best class in 2006. They are the top seed in the tournament and the overall favorite to win it.

Memphis had the 9th best in 2004, 6th best in 2005, and 4th best in 2007. They are #1 seed and were ranked #1 for a long period this season.

Louisville had the 7th best in 2004, 5th best in 2005, 9th best in 2005, and they were a team talking about getting a #1 seed earlier in the year and many people think they will make a run this year.

Kent can't rely simply on next years freshmen for the next 4 years like he did with Hairston, Maarty, and Taylor. He needs to sign again at least a top 25 class for the class of 09 and follow that up again with another top 25 class.

Following a good class with another and another allows you to have someone in waiting if a player doesn't develop into the high level player you were hoping and by sheer numbers you will most likely have a guy that is capable.

So if Kent can land another top class next year things may change and we might see the team improve because we will actually have a bench which we don't have and haven't had since Kent has been here. Until Kent develops the ability to build depth and Oregon being able to go 8, 9, 10 deep Oregon and its fans will always banter on the idea if Kent is a good coach or not. Coaching is 30% of the game, but having better players than team B as they enter the program is more important. So if Kent cant land another top class next fall, I would be inclined to start looking elsewhere.

Ducks Set To Take On Bulldogs Amid Mixed Pac-10 Results

The Oregon Ducks and Mississippi State Bulldogs are set to play Friday evening in Little Rock, Arkansas and the eventual winner most likely playing number one seed Memphis Tigers.

The Ducks held a two hour practice at an undisclosed high school that was near the arena the Ducks will play in tomorrow. They then used the 45 minute practice at Alltel Arena as a shoot around for the Duck players to get adjusted to the surroundings of the stadium and the depth behind each hoop.

The Ducks have a lot to prove Friday evening as they try to show the Pac-10, the nation, and particularly the Arizona State Sun Devils that they belong in the field of 65 for the tournament. Will Oregon give a showing similar to UCLA or Stanford where they ran from their opponents? Or will Oregon show up and get out hustled and play into foul trouble like USC did Thursday afternoon? How about the showing WSU gave, starting slow and uninspired basketball and finished with a ease and resting starters on the bench with a blow out on hand? Finally, will Oregon show up like Arizona did, where they just ran out of gas and couldn't hit the big shots when it was needed and ended up just short of a win?

The Ducks are set to play during the prime time slot for CBS and they are the only Pac-10 team playing on Friday so the stage is set for the Ducks to leave a big impression on the nation and for the seniors, on their careers at Oregon. “Hopefully,” Malik Hairston says, “our accomplishments aren’t done.”

“If we make another great run,” Maarty Leunen says, “not too many people are gonna remember the losses to Nebraska or Oakland, or whatever.”

When the Ducks have had to travel long distances for a first round match up, Oregon hasn't faired very well and have had to come back home after a quick exit in the first round in 1999 and 2003. Will Oregon break the trend? The players think so.

“No negative thoughts,” Hairston says, “we don’t plan on losing a game”.

Is that a guarantee that Oregon is going to win tomorrow? If Oregon fans are questioning the confidence level of the Ducks you can quickly leave that question at the door and watch what Duck players are saying will be a good win.

Notes From 1st Day's sessions

In the spring of 2004 Oregon fans saw South Salem HS senior standout Jeremiah Dominguez dominate the 4A basketball field in Eugene for the state playoffs. Fans were expecting Oregon coach Ernie Kent and his coaching staff to offer and as it appeared Dominguez could play at the Pac-10 level even with his lack of size as Dominguez stands 5'6.

Well Oregon didn't offer and Dominguez ended up going to the University of Portland and then transfered to Portland State last season for his last two years of basketball. Dominguez sat out last season and entered this season as a Red-Shirt Junior and starting for the Vikings.

Dominguez ended up leading the Vikings to a Big Sky Tournament Championship and earning Big Sky player of the year as he averaged 14 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 rebounds a game as he shot 47% from the field and 44% from the three point line.

So did Oregon make the right choice and not offering the mighty might PG from Salem?

This observer thinks Oregon made the right choice in not offering Dominguez. Yes he is the same height as current PG Tajuan Porter but Porter has shown the ability to be able to score and create his own shot when matched up against bigger, faster, and stronger defenders. Porter is quicker with and without the ball and has a better range for his long ball.

The deciding factor is the fact that Porter has shown he can have big games against good teams where Dominguez has not shown he can rise up against better competition and raise his game much like Porter has shown. On the flip side however, Dominguez has shown the ability to run an offense in both half court and a face pace offense. He is a considerably better distributer then Porter is however.

All in all, most people would take Porter over Dominguez in most cases. Oregon and Viking fans might get a chance to see the two mini ballers match up and battle on the court next season as Oregon played Portland this year and it should be Portland State's turn to play the Ducks.

Quick Insight On MSU

MSU went 22-10, 12-4 in the SEC and they won the SEC West for the 4th time in 6 years. The Bulldogs are 3-6 against teams in the NCAA Tournament.



The Bulldogs set an SEC single season record in blocks as the Bulldogs blocked 243 blocks this year. The Bulldogs pride themselves in defense as they ranked in the top 3 in the SEC in scoring defense(65 points a game), field-goal percentage defense (36.9 percent) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (31.6 percent).

Starting Lineup

G/F Jamont Gordon, 6-4 Jr. 17.3 PPG/6.3 RPG/4.8 APG/4.0 turnovers PG

F/C Charles Rhodes, 6-8 Sr. 16.9 PPG/7.7 RPG/ 2.2 turnovers PG

G Barry Stewart, 6-2 So. 11.6 PPG

G Ben Hansbrough, 6-3 So. 10.4 PPG

F/C Jarvis Varnado, 6-9 So. 7.7 PPG 4.6 BlksG



Gordon and Rhodes were both All-SEC players this past season and have been the best scoring duo for MSU since Jeff Malone and Terry Lewis in the 1982-83 season.



The Bulldogs also will rely heavily on their starting lineup as they hardly use their bench. 3 starters average over 33 minutes a game

Oregon Plucks 9 Seed In Tournament

Amid all the speculation regarding the Oregon Ducks and their chances of making the NCAA Men's Tournament were quickly put away as the Ducks were given a 9 seed in the South bracket as they face the Mississippi State Bulldogs from the SEC conference.

Oregon finished tied for 5th in the Pac-10 with Arizona State at 9-9 in Pac-10 play. Oregon finished the season 18-13 with big wins coming against Kansas State(road win), Stanford, ASU, Arizona(twice), and Utah. Oregon's seed came at a surprise however with the understanding that Oregon had bad losses to St. Mary's, Oakland, Nebraska, Washington, and finishing 1-8 against the top four teams in the Pac-10 this season.

Oregon will face Mississippi State who finished first in the SEC West with a 12-4 record in conference and lost to eventual SEC Tournament Champion Georgia Bulldogs in the semifinals of the SEC tournament.

Mississippi finished the last 12 games going 8-4 and wins going 1-2 against teams that made the NCAA Tournament Field.

Oregon will meet MSU on Friday in the evening game period and the winner will face the winner of #1 seed Memphis and #16 seed Texas Arlington on Sunday.

Stay tuned for a breakdown on Mississippi State.

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