Dana Altman opens up on 'big reduction' in NIL as Oregon roster thins

Change is the name of the game in college athletics these days, and the Oregon Ducks are dealing with the harsh consequences of it as the college basketball transfer portal opens.

Dana Altman is coming off his worst season as the leader of the Ducks, finishing just 12-20. Some of that could be attributed to injuries and the loss of Jackson Shelstad in the backcourt for most of the season, but overall, the Ducks just didn't have a ton of size and skilled shooters. It's hard to be successful in this era of college hoops without those two things.

Now, after several players have entered their names into the transfer portal, the Ducks are left with just one scholarship player from last season: Sean Stewart, who also isn't a sure thing to be in Eugene next season. The Ducks have freshmen on the way in the form of Tahj Ariza, Kendre Harrison and Seven Spurlock, but it's clear that Altman needs more.

While speaking to the media in a press conference on Thursday, Altman noted that the Ducks really wanted to keep a core of three players moving into next season, which included Shelstad, Stewart and Kwame Evans Jr., who also entered the portal. As for the rest, the shrinking budget for the program left the Ducks with few options to sway the roster to return.

“We did not pull anybody’s scholarship," Altman said. "Everybody had their scholarship, and it would have been renewed. But we are working within a budget, and some guys were gonna lose their NIL, either totally or taking a reduction. Big reduction.”

At Oregon, it's clear that football is the focus point and more resources are provided to the program that is the bigger revenue driver and closer to competing for a national championship. That doesn't mean the men's basketball program has been kicked to the side, but it does mean Altman's hands are tied to an extent when it comes to retaining the roster when NIL commitments are being reduced or pulled completely. The same goes for filling out the roster after those departures.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous when you have a lot of new faces like that,” Altman said. “ We’re excited about a couple of freshmen that are coming in, too, but we know they’re freshmen. The adjustment to the Big Ten and the level of play that we want to have. We know that can be an adjustment period for a freshman. So getting the experience that we want, getting the experience at this level, is important to us.”

Altman isn't shying away from his worst season with the Ducks since he took over the program in 2010. At times, the team appeared to be disjointed on the floor defensively and also couldn't buy a bucket for long stretches against physical competition.

"I made some mistakes with evaluation and inexperience," Altman said about last season's roster. "When our experienced guys suffered injuries, our inexperienced showed, especially in a year where the Big Ten was a dominant conference."

While none of the entrants into the portal were a surprise to Altman, the NIL situation for the program has raised concerns about filling the open spots on the roster with talent ready to play in a tough conference. The reality is that the Ducks might not attract the top-tier portal targets they could sway in another sport.

For Altman, the selling point is having a chance to win and play in the Big Ten, but the downside is the lack of money to go around the locker room.

"Our collective works really hard to give us a chance to compete ... We're not underfunded," Altman said. "I'm not going to blame it on that. I didn't do my job, all right. I could have done a better job, and I've got to do a better job this year to put us in that position. So we'll make it work. Fortunately, we’ve got some people who want to see us get back to where we’ve been. And we’ve got to make those figures match and get the guys we need."

While the Ducks might not be able to spend in a similar way, they could follow a blueprint that Michigan set last season. The Wolverines took a starting lineup made entirely of transfers and won a national championship. The Ducks likely won't be able to replicate that on the same scale, but it's proof that Altman could find a way to win with new faces in the room before his 17th season in Eugene.

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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Dana Altman breaks down Ducks departures, transfer portal needs