Oregon Shores up Weakness with Rice Transfer Arsalan Kazemi

Few teams in the Pac-12 have a weakness more glaring than Oregon’s lack of a big-time board-getter.

Oregon’s best rebounder last season (E.J. Singler) pulled down just 5.6 boards per game, the second lowest mark for a team’s leading rebounder in the Pac-12. Only Trojans guard Byron Wesley, USC’s top-performing rebounder last season, owned a lower total.

March 03, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Rice Owls forward Arsalan Kazemi (14) attempts a shot in the first half against the Houston Cougars at Tudor Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-US PRESSWIRE

Less than three weeks before the team’s first official practice, the Ducks shored up their rebounding deficiency by grabbing the best available rebounder on the open market. And they did so in grand style.

Oregon beat out Kentucky on the recruiting wire—yes, in basketball—to land coveted Rice transfer Arsalan Kazemi. Kazemi, a physical 6-foot-7 forward and rebounding maestro, committed to Dana Altman and his staff following a visit to the Eugene campus on Saturday. He has since enrolled at Oregon and begun working out with the team.

The first Iranian-born college basketball player to play in Division 1, Kazemi averaged 12.4 points and 10.3 rebounds for the Owls as a junior last season. Had he returned to Rice for his senior campaign, the transfer forward would have been a preseason favorite for Conference USA player of the year honors. In addition to Oregon and Kentucky, Kazemi was also considering Texas, Florida, Ohio State and Cincinnati.

Kazemi is pursuing a hardship waiver to play immediately. Under NCAA rules, transfers not granted a special waiver must sit out two semesters before playing in games for their new school.

The three-year Owl standout exits his former school under extraordinary circumstances, becoming the sixth player to leave Rice since the end of last season. Kazemi joins ex-teammate Omar Oraby (USC) as the second Rice player to transfer into the Pac-12.

If the NCAA grants Kazemi a waiver, the core of Oregon’s starting front court next season will consist of players making second and third college stops. Other than the senior Singler, a native Oregonian who has remained at the school for all four years, the Ducks will lean heavily on a crop of transfers who first made names for themselves at other place.

Starting center Tony Woods, a Wake Forest transfer who developed into a starting role at Oregon during conference play last season, should see an uptick in minutes what with the loss of forward Olu Ashaolu. The Ducks have also bolstered their depth down low this offseason thanks to the addition of 6-foot-11 junior college transfer Waverly Austin, a versatile big man expected to back up Woods at center next season.

No transfer ticketed for Eugene, however, is more significant than the Middle Eastern migrant who passed up the glitz of Kentucky for a leading role at Oregon. With Kazemi on board for one season—whenever, exactly, he is eligible to play—the Ducks will no longer have to lean on a perimeter-oriented player to shoulder the rebounding load.

To compete with the muscle of Washington, Arizona, UCLA and the like inside, Oregon needed to revamp its frontcourt using external solutions. So after combing the transfer wire and stumbling upon the only Iranian-born player in college basketball, not only did the Ducks end up with quite the story, but they may have pulled down the Pac-12’s future top rebounder too.