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Organized by Ducks Rising
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Travis Rooke-Ley
Basketball Deep Dive (June 2nd)
Today is June 2nd and Oregon still finds itself with roster spots to be filled. Dana Altman and Co. lost F Brandon Angel, G TJ Bamba, G Keeshawn Barthelemy, F Supreme Cook, G Ra’Heim Moss, and Walk-On G Jayson Williams-Johnson, all of which are out of eligibility. Angel and Moss both have also entered the transfer portal in the hopes of getting another year. Oregon lost three more to the transfer portal in F Jadrian Tracey (VCU), F Mookie Cook (San Francisco), and Preferred Walk-On F James Cooper, who hasn’t found a home yet. The biggest loss from this group is definitely TJ Bamba or Keeshawn Barthelemy.
Bamba was red hot in November, most notably the Player’s Era Festival Tournament in Las Vegas, where the Ducks ran the floor. Following this stretch however, the Villanova transfer fell into a career worst slump in terms of shooting percentage and overall efficiency. Bamba averaged 10.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.8 steals per game. The Senior’s shooting splits were 38.9/25.3/74.0, well below average. TJ’s defense was outstanding and could completely take a player out of the game on any given night, which Oregon will certainly miss.
Keeshawn Barthelemy was another very experienced guard for the Ducks this past season, and he was the team’s sharpshooter. Barthelemy averaged 10.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.1 steals this past season. The Canadian-born Barthelemy shot 42.6% from the field, 41.4% from deep, and 88.6% from the FT line. Keeshawn was extremely dependable this season, and when Oregon needed him most, he stepped up
I won’t get into the specifics with Mookie Cook as to what exactly happened, but for all the drama behind the scenes, Oregon was content going another direction. Jadrian Tracey wanted to start (and potentially could have given the roster), but also wanted to be a bit closer to home (Florida).
The Ducks only brought in a singular prep prospect in this class, JJ Frakes. Frakes isn’t a high-rated player, nor is he expected to make an immediate contribution. Dana Altman and staff are taking a flyer on the Berrien Springs, Michigan native. Frakes had interest from a good chunk of teams but injuries and the lack of exposure led him to fall through the cracks. 247 Sports lists the 6’5 190-pound shooting guard as the No. 39 SG, and No. 3 player in Michigan. On3 Sports has Frakes as the No. 298 player in the 2025 class, No. 78 SG, and No. 4 prospect from Michigan.
Oregon was active early but missed on a plethora of its transfer portal targets this offseason. In order of who committed first, Oregon landed commitments from F Devon Pryor (Texas), G TK “Takai” Simpkins (Elon), and F/C Sean Stewart (Ohio State). The Ducks also added Howard transfer F Miles Stewart, the older brother of Sean Stewart, but I am still unsure if he will be on scholarship or not. Oregon landed former Penn State C Miles Goodman but the staff moved on from him after some allegations came out, which I also won’t get into.
Devon Pryor wasn’t on a ton of people’s radars as a “big fish” in the transfer portal, but appears ready to break out in his Junior season for Oregon. The uber-athletic wing has serious two-way potential but has only played 30 games in his two years with the Longhorns. Pryor projects as Oregon’s starting Small Forward next season, despite coming off a year where he averaged 3.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, and 0.3 steals in 12.1 minutes per game. Pryor declared for the NBA Draft back in April, strictly to get feedback from scouts, and has since withdrawn his name.
Here’s the scouting report I was given after the Ducks landed the Houston, TX native:
“Devon Pryor is a guard/wing from Houston that didn’t play a ton his freshman or sophomore seasons, but looked to be a guy that could be a contributor next season. He’s 6-foot-7, 185 pounds and has very good quickness and straight-line speed.
He uses a very good handle to score efficiently, though on limited attempts. Played 12.1 minutes per game and averaged 3.2 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.5 assists, and shot 52% from the field (though a very poor 18% from deep). His game is all in attacking the basket, as 2/3rds of his attempts from the field are at the rim, where he was highly efficient (1.52 points per shot). While it wasn’t consistent, he did have a pull-up midrange shot he went to a few times. He had an important one fall against Mississippi State, so maybe that’s something he’s working on.
He got pushed out of the rotation towards the end of the season, but before the last five games where he scored a combined two points, he played a small role in the offense. He’s thought of as a great wing defender as well, and though he does need some work in terms of awareness, the tools are great, and could easily improve and translate into Dana Altman’s defensive system.
I see him as a possible guard going forward, as the handle is a real strength. He obviously needs to improve a lot of things, but I predict he will be a guy that gets 20 minutes per game next season depending on your wing depth.” - Keenan Womack of Inside Texas
TK Simpkins from Elon was the second pickup of the offseason for Oregon. The 6’4 184-pound Shooting Guard averaged 16.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.1 steals per game with Elon this past season. Simpkins shot 42.3% from the field, 36.7% from deep, and 75.6% from the FT line. Here is a link showcasing more of Simpkin’s stats and highlights (HERE). Simpkins is expected to compete for the starting shooting guard position, or “2 guard,” along with Sophomore Jamari Phillips, who played sparingly last season at Oregon. An interesting tidbit on Simpkins, is that he started out at Northwest Florida State Junior College, and could potentially have two more years of eligibility, instead of just one.
Ohio State Forward Sean Stewart was somewhat of a surprise grab, as the visit news went a bit under the radar. Both Sean and his older brother were able to visit at that time, and the brothers would both later commit to the Ducks. Sean is a former 5-Star prospect that originally played at Duke. Stewart played sparingly in his time at Duke, which opted him to transfer to Ohio State. This season, the soon-to-be Junior from Windermere, Florida started all 30 games he played in. Despite this, Stewart only played in 18.4 minutes per game due to his foul trouble. In his Sophomore campaign, Stewart averaged 5.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game. The 6’9 220-pound PF/C shot 54.2% from the field, 50% from deep (2 attempts), and 50% from the charity stripe.
Oregon’s Projected Starters & Rotation
G Jackson Shelstad
G TK Simpkins (Elon) OR Jamari Phillips
F Devon Pryor (Texas)
F Kwame Evans Jr
C Nate Bittle
Who is Oregon still pursuing in the transfer portal?
The only name in the portal that I have confirmation on (with mutual interest) is USC transfer Desmond Claude. I’m not really sure A. I would like this addition because of the fit, or B. If Oregon is truly willing to spend for a ball-dominant guard that would take the ball out of Shelstad’s hands. Claude isn’t quite the defender Bamba was, but he could definitely be a top 2-3 defender if he lands with the Ducks. Oregon could certainly ask Claude to come in as a wing, but that isn’t where he is best.
International Players
To my knowledge, Oregon is only pursuing KK Dynamic VP’s Aleksa Ristic, a 2005 born guard/wing from Serbia. When talking to a source, I was told that Ristic may wait (upon Oregon’s request) to commit later. I was told by the same source, that Oregon has been a bit on-and-off with him as well. In 19 games with Dynamic VP, Ristic averaged 13.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.2 assists per game in 27.6 minutes per contest. The 6’4 Wing 54.2% on 2-pointers this season, 38.6% on 3-pointers, and 83.7% from the free throw line.
2026 Recruiting
It’s never too early to look ahead to the next recruiting cycle, one that will be critical for Oregon. As things sit with next year’s roster, the Ducks are guaranteed to lose Nate Bittle, Oleksandr Kobszystyi, and Miles Stewart. Oregon could also be losing TK Simpkins, Jackson Shelstad, Kwame Evans, or Devon Pryor due to eligibility or the NBA Draft.
The Ducks are players for a ton of talent early and have already scheduled several visits for 2026 players.
The most relevant as it relates to the 2025 roster, is 4-Star SG Kohl Rosario, who is flying up boards. The 6’6 180-pound shooting guard has recently received offers from major blue bloods, such as Duke, North Carolina, and Kansas due to his performance in the Adidas Next Gen Euroleague tournament. While playing in the ANGE tournament, Rosario averaged 15.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.7 steals across 3 games, while receiving 31 minutes per game. Kohl shot 6/13 (46.2%) from the field, 8/19 (42.1%) from 3-pt, and 9/13 (69.2%) from the Free Throw line. Rosario plays for Overtime Elite, where two other major Oregon targets in the 2026 class also play.
The Ducks will get the first visit for Rosario, which I was told starts today. Rosario will be on campus through the end of the day tomorrow before heading home. Kohl will then visit Kansas on June 17-18, Duke June 26-27, and Baylor June 29-30. Rosario is also considering trips to North Carolina, Florida State, and South Florida, but there is nothing set in stone with those visits. No official decision has been made on if Rosario will reclass to the 2025 class or not yet, and each of the teams listed are recruiting him as a ‘25 and ‘26 recruit for the time being. Oregon has the most clear path forward in terms of playing time for Kohl, but going up against several blue bloods isn’t the most encouraging.
Oregon will receive September visits from 4-Star PG Taylen Kinney, 4-Star SG Adam Oumiddoch, 5-Star SF Tajh Ariza, and 4-Star SF Cameron Holmes. Kinney, Oumiddoch, and Ariza will all visit September 6th, while Holmes will visit the Ducks September 20th. Oregon is a major player for all 4 of these players and I wouldn’t be shocked to see them land 1-2 of them, but only time will tell.
The Ducks are also players for 5-Star SF, and consensus No. 1 player in the country, Tyran Stokes, who is rumored to be visiting Oregon in September/October. Nothing official has been set up for Stokes, but he had been subject to a ton of reclassification talks as well, before playing in the latest EYBL circuit.
Oregon has been in pretty consistent contact with two other players, 4-Star SF Maximo Adams, and 4-Star SG Anthony Felesi, who they recently offered. That’s all of the info I have for now, but I will be sure to update you all when I hear more.
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