NCAA Basketball: Top 25 impact freshmen classes for 2023-24 season

6. Oregon Ducks

The Ducks and Coach Dana Altman have struggled with five-star prospects lately, including Kel’el Ware. He struggled this past season as a freshman and ultimately transferred to Indiana. But there’s hope that the trio of newcomers can have a big enough impact to take the team back to the NCAA Tournament.

Kwame Evans is a 6’9 combo forward whose versatility is his calling call. He’s an elite athlete with high potential as a defender and a capable slasher to the basket. Joining Evans is Mookie Cook, a 6’7 wing with a similar game. He’s a better shooter overall and also a quality athlete as well and at one point was ranked in the top-10 overall.

The other player to watch is Jackson Shelstad, a four-star point guard prospect. He’s one of the best ball-handlers in the entire group and since Will Richardson is gone, is likely to start for Oregon next season. There’s a possibility that he follows the path of former Duck and longtime starting point guard Payton Pritchard, who won Pac-12 Player of the Year honors.

Not many power conference teams are set to start multiple freshmen but there’s a good chance Oregon starts all three. The question will be how much of an impact they’ll have and whether it’s good enough to return to the postseason.