NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Oregon of last decade

6. Jazz Johnson – Portland / Nevada

Johnson is a 5’10 point guard originally from Lake Oswego who made waves at multiple mid-majors on the west coast. Johnson played his first two seasons at Portland before transferring to Nevada, joining a stacked roster that Eric Musselman had built with the Wolf Pack. He was a very solid offensive piece for both of those programs.

As a sophomore at Portland, he averaged 15.8 points per game after serving mostly as a reserve the previous season. He scored a then-career-high 26 points in his final game with the Pilots, a tough conference tournament loss to Saint Mary’s. After sitting out the next season, he became an important part of the picture at Nevada. He put up 11.0 points a game as a reserve as a junior before sliding into more of a starring role as a senior. He appeared in the NCAA Tournament in that junior season before averaging nearly 16 points a game in his final collegiate campaign.

Johnson showed potential at Portland but became even more impressive at Nevada. He was named MWC Sixth Man of the Year as a junior before bringing home All-MWC Second Team honors the following season. He was one of the very best shooters in the conference, shooting just under 41% from 3 as a senior to lead the MWC. After his career ended in 2020, he’s spent recent times playing overseas, as many of these talented players have done, with Johnson’s most recent action coming in Italy.