Oregon enters a new era after leaving the Pac-12 to join the Big Ten and losing its top two scorers, N’Faly Dante and Jermaine Couisnard.
A constant remains with coach Dana Altman, who has won four Pac-12 regular season titles, four Pac-12 tournament titles and been named Pac-12 coach of the year three times in his 14 seasons leading the Ducks.
Here’s a full breakdown of Oregon’s offseason roster changes, plus its outlook for the 2024-25 season.
Who they lost
Who they gained
Returning
Reasons for optimism
Altman retained several players who should be in line for starting roles and have potential for breakout seasons. Start with point guard Jackson Shelstad, who had 13 games with 15-plus points and earned spots on the Pac-12 All-Tournament team and Pac-12 All-Freshman team last season. He’s an electric scorer capable of taking a big step and contending for All-Big Ten status with Jermaine Couisnard graduating.
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Forward Kwame Evans Jr. is another player primed to make a sophomore jump. The former five-star recruit out of Montverde Academy did a bit of everything as a freshman, averaging 7.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 1.1 assists and 1.0 blocks per game. At 6-foot-9 with NBA potential, he’s capable of handling the ball and knocking down outside shots, though he’ll have to improve on his 26.7% 3-point shooting from last season.
The Ducks will also hope to get full seasons from 7-foot senior center Nate Bittle, a former five-star recruit, and sophomore wing Mookie Cook, a top-30 recruit in the class of 2023. Both were limited to just five games last season due to injury but could really help Oregon this year.
In the transfer portal, Altman landed three players who were double-digit scorers at the high-major level: 6-foot-5 guard TJ Bamba from Villanova, 6-foot-8 wing Brandon Angel from Stanford and 6-foot-9 forward Supreme Cook from Georgetown. Cook forms a talented frontcourt trio with Evans and Bittle, while Bamba (36.9%) and Angel (44.7%) will help the Ducks’ 3-point shooting and slashing ability on the wings.
Biggest concerns
Jermaine Couisnard and N’Faly Dante carried Oregon on their backs during two NCAA Tournament games, accounting for 123 of the Ducks’ 160 total points. Oregon hoped Dante would get an extra year of eligibility, but his appeal was denied by the NCAA. As a result, Oregon will have to move forward without the dynamic duo of Dante, who would have been one of the top centers in college basketball, and Couisnard, a veteran, high-scoring guard.
While Oregon has several young players who are poised to have big years, it’s always difficult for a team to move forward after losing its two leading scorers. It may take the Ducks some time early in the season to learn their roles and build team chemistry, but Altman has the pieces to build a balanced and talented starting five. The other big question with Oregon is its depth, as Altman will rely on a few freshmen and mid-major transfers in backup roles.
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The bottom line
Despite losing two program pillars in Couisnard and Dante, I’m going to trust Altman’s track record of consistency and success. Across 14 seasons at Oregon, he has made the NCAA Tournament eight times, including a Final Four run, two trips to the Elite Eight and five Sweet 16 appearances. He could easily have made another deep run in 2019-20 with a team that peaked at No. 4 in the AP top-25 poll, but the tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Led by budding stars Shelstad and Evans, plus a group of proven transfers, Oregon should safely finish in the top half of the Big Ten. Their ceiling may be limited to a No. 4 or No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but Altman has put together another solid team.
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Northwestern Wildcats
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Nebraska Cornhuskers
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Michigan State Spartans
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Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Michigan Wolverines
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Maryland Terrapins
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Iowa Hawkeyes
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Indiana Hoosiers
Big Ten Offseason Evaluation: Illinois Fighting Illini
PORTLAND, Ore. — A man accused of killing several women and dumping their bodies in the Portland area was arraigned Wednesday on a fifth murder charge.
Jesse Calhoun’s defense attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in a Portland courtroom where victims’ family members were present. The hearing, during which Calhoun remained silent, came after he was indicted last week on the most recent second-degree murder charge over the death of Ashley Real, 22, in 2023.
Calhoun has now been charged with five counts of second-degree murder for five victims, along with four counts of abuse of a corpse. The victims’ bodies were found over multiple months in early 2023, sparking concern at the time that a serial killer might be targeting young women in the region.
Calhoun was previously indicted in the deaths of Kristin Smith, 22; Charity Perry, 24; Bridget Webster, 31; and Joanna Speaks, 32.
He remains in custody at the Multnomah County Detention Center. His defense attorneys declined to comment.
Real, Perry, Webster and Smith were found in northwestern Oregon, while Speaks was found near an abandoned barn in southwestern Washington. Their bodies were found in a roughly 100-mile radius, including in wooded areas and in a culvert.
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Jose Real, Ashley Real’s father, was in tears as he spoke with reporters after the hearing. He recalled memories of watching her grow up and playing with her brother.
“I never thought or imagined that my family would experience something like this,” he said through a Spanish interpreter. “She had a heart of gold.”
Masciell Real, Ashley’s sister, also spoke through tears.
“I think being in that courtroom today and being able to see him, and know that he is behind bars now, it takes the weight off my shoulders knowing that he isn’t around and free to cause any harm to any other women out there,” she said. “But it also doesn’t take away the fact that my sister isn’t here anymore.”
Relatives of other victims were also present.
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“We’ve all experienced the worst thing that could ever happen to you, and it’s incredibly hard to see one of the other families hurt the way we do,” said Melissa Smith, mother of Kristin Smith.
Jose Real previously told The Associated Press that he had called police in November 2022 after his daughter showed up crying at his Portland home, saying she had been choked by Calhoun. She had marks on her throat, he said, and he took her to a hospital.
Real said at the time that an initial police report was taken but that the case was then transferred to a different jurisdiction and it was difficult to reach those overseeing it. Details of the attack were first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive.
His daughter’s body was found in May 2023 by a man who was fishing in a pond southeast of Portland.
Calhoun was arrested in June 2023 on unrelated parole warrants and then indicted in 2024 and 2025 in the other four women’s deaths. The initial indictment came weeks before Calhoun was due to be released from state prison, where he was returned in 2023 to finish serving a four-year term for assaulting a police officer, trying to strangle a police dog, burglary and other charges.
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He was initially released in 2021, a year early, because he helped fight wildfires in 2020 under a prison firefighting program. Gov. Tina Kotek revoked the commutation in 2023 when police began investigating him in the deaths.
The University of Oregon’s Board of Trustees voted Tuesday to approve a $1.55 billion operating budget for the next fiscal year.
But they asked university leadership to return with an amended proposal by Dec. 15, when more details about future budget cuts will be known.
FILE — The Board of Trustees recently approved next year’s budget for the University of Oregon. The vote comes several weeks after the school’s president announced that he wants the university to reduce its annual budget as revenues and out-of-state enrollment decline.
Brian Bull / KLCC
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The vote comes several weeks after University of Oregon President Karl Scholz announced that he wants the school to reduce its annual budget by around $65 million.
At a trustees meeting Monday, Scholz said the estimated budget shortfall for next year is just around $23 million. But he said out-of-state enrollment is below historical norms for the second year in a row, and it’s unlikely to bounce back.
“One year can be an aberration. Two years is a pattern,” said Scholz. “And I believe we have to treat it as a new reality.”
Scholz said in May that discussions about the budget would happen over a six-month period. He said no final decisions about cuts would be made over this summer.
On Monday, UO Senate President Dyana Mason told trustees that the Senate had approved a new process to allow for community feedback in the cost-cutting process.
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Mason said the provost will work with the deans on budget proposals, finding “clear rationale” for why programs are considered for elimination.
The provost would then bring those proposals to the Senate Committee for Academic Modifications—which includes staff, faculty and students—for feedback.
Once the plans are nearly finalized, the Senate could then hold a period for public comment.
Mason told trustees that a six-month timeline is better than the three months that frustrated some staff last year, but she recommended taking however much time is necessary.
“The worst situation would be rushing forward to make decisions without appropriate evidence, data, feedback from the people that are most in the know about the impact on our students,” said Mason.
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UO’s Board of Trustees Chair Steve Holwerda said that every week that university delays the decisions could cost them millions of dollars.
Nathan Wilk is a reporter with the KLCC newsroom.This story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
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Oregon’s juvenile justice system has been reshaped in recent years by a sweeping reform law that changed how the state handles minors accused of serious crimes.
Senate Bill 1008, which took effect in 2020, ended automatic transfers of juveniles into adult court and eliminated life without parole sentences for juveniles. The law also created “second-look” hearings and established parole eligibility after 15 years for certain offenders who committed crimes before turning 18.
To help explain the law and its impact, KVAL’s Frannie Pedersen put together a timeline video tracing the history of Senate Bill 1008, from the passage of Measure 11 in 1994 to the reforms that later reshaped Oregon’s juvenile justice system.
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The video breaks down how the law changed, why lawmakers pushed for reform, and how SB 1008 continues to influence Oregon’s justice system today. Viewers can watch the full video for a detailed timeline and explanation of the changes.
