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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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 12: Amauri Hardy #3 of the UNLV Rebels (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

3. How the transfers work into the rotation

Last season, head coach Dana Altman added four transfers to the roster. Two of them (Shakur Juiston and Anthony Mathis), were solid contributors and started a combined 46 games this past season. The other two (Eric Williams Jr. and Eugene Omoruyi) sat out and will be eligible to play next season.

Joining them this offseason is a trio of transfer pickups. Aaron Estrada (St. Peter’s), averaged 6.4 ppg as a freshman and is likely to sit out a year. Amauri Hardy (UNLV) put up 14.5 ppg and is a combo guard that’ll suit up as a grad transfer on the perimeter. Then came a surprising pickup of LJ Figueroa of St. John’s, who put up 14.5 ppg and 4.5 rpg before transferring out this offseason. He’s looking for a waiver to play immediately but for now, it’s 50/50.

Assuming Figueroa plays and Estrada doesn’t, that’ll be an interesting situation for Coach Altman in terms of the rotation. All four of them could seemingly start, but Richardson, wing Chris Duarte, and Dante are likely starters. If Figueroa can get the waiver, it’s hard to imagine him not starting as well. Hardy may be best suited to be the 6th man off the bench anyway since he can play multiple positions.

That puts Williams and Omoruyi in intriguing situations. Omoruyi had a breakout junior season at Rutgers (13.8 ppg and 7.2 rpg) and is a natural power forward but can he play well alongside Dante without spacing problems? Williams, an elite athlete who put up big numbers at Duquense, can also play multiple positions. But will he be able to perform in the Pac-12 to warrant a rotation spot?

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These four will be competing with five returning position players, a top-tier freshman and a redshirt freshman forward in Lok Wur. 10 players split minutes in the Ducks’ rotation last season. Could someone be the odd man out? Only time will tell if these transfers made the right decision.

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