Oregon Basketball: 3 biggest storylines for Ducks in 2020 offseason

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JANUARY 18: Payton Pritchard #3 of the Oregon Ducks celebrates after defeating the Washington Huskies 64-61 in overtime during their game at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on January 18, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) /

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EUGENE, OREGON – FEBRUARY 13: Payton Pritchard #3 of the Oregon Ducks (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /

1. Oregon Basketball will have a new starting point guard

One of the hardest things to do in college basketball is to replace a four-year starter. Especially someone who was an All-American and Conference Player of the Year star. Payton Pritchard started 140 games throughout his career with the Ducks, posting career-high numbers this past season with 20.5 ppg and 5.5 apg. Arguably though, his best performances came in the ladder half of his junior season, where he willed Oregon to a Sweet 16 appearance.

Now, the Ducks are going to need to find a new lead ball-handler. And there are a few candidates that could do the job. One of them is four-star point guard Jalen Terry, the lone true freshman joining the team for next season. Grad transfer Amauri Hardy averaged 3.4 apg in the past two seasons at UNLV, although he’s more of a scorer and pure facilitator.

But the likelihood Day 1 starter will be Will Richardson, a former top-50 recruit who as a sophomore, posted up 11.0 ppg and 2.3 apg last season, primarily off the bench. He’s waited his time behind Pritchard and will probably get rewarded with the first start.

But expect it to be more of a collective effort on the perimeter in regards to overall facilitating. Hardy can move the ball at the shooting guard position, while 6’6 guard Addison Patterson is also someone to keep an eye on in the rotation. There won’t be an individual that can replace the leadership and overall production of Pritchard but there are enough Ducks that combined can do the job.

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