Oregon basketball: Michael Dunigan included in investigation into men’s program

its gonna be a tough year in oregon. Armstead is a very good player and could make a all-conference team. Singler has some skills and could really emerge this year. Catron coming back gives them a solid low post presence. But right now, I have them finishing last in the pac 10.

its gonna be a tough year in oregon. Armstead is a very good player and could make a all-conference team. Singler has some skills and could really emerge this year. Catron coming back gives them a solid low post presence. But right now, I have them finishing last in the pac 10.

I think some of you guys know me, and my love for the Ducks, and this stings. Dunigan was a player who I was elated to have sign with us, he was a 5 star Center recruit who signed in summer, it was something that had just not happened to us. He was the biggest signing we had since Aaron Brooks, who was just finishing his time at UO. Dunigan became a McDonald’s All-American, and finally seemed like a true post player we had never had. We had gone through Ian Crosswhite, a 7 foot Austrailian who at times could be a huge match-up nightmare, but travelled more than Angelina Jolie. Ian unfortunately was kicked off the team due to unknown reasons, but rumors went from his excessive drinking (he would commonly be seen at bars drinking straight out of the pitcher) to possible nose candy consumption. Either way, Ian never lived up to expectations, which were NBA level. Another post player who at times looked beastly was Ivan Johnson, who I believe still plays in the D-League. A JUCO transfer with a troubled past, Johnson had a big frame and definite athleticism to go with it. He at times looked like a man amongst boys. But, after his one inconsistent season, he too was kicked off of the team and out of the school. I will not go into the rumors, but it was just another let down for our team. This time, it seems that Dunigan chose to leave the school, but the rumors of indiscretion on the part of our team just makes it seem like he is again just leaving our program before his time.

Like many Duck fans, I had a love and hate relationship with our former coach, Ernie Kent. I felt like he was arrogant, but he seemed to also have an ability to find some hidden gems, and two Elite 8 appearances, in terms of our school, were very impressive. Numerous NBA players and many other memorable players, my favorite being James Davis, a 5’10 SG with one of the sweetest strokes you have ever seen. I was at Oregon at a time where we had a bevy of 7 footers or damn close, Crosswhite, Mitch Platt who was 6-10 and true 7 footers Matt Short and my friend Ray Schafer. Unfortunately, while many of them got PT early in their careers, in the end they all seemed to find a way into Ernie’s dog house. Maarty Leunen ideally should have played 4, or even on the wing, but he was forced to play in the post for his Oregon career. He was deservedly drafted, and plays in Europe, but Maarty could have been even better if he were not forced to play 5 for his career. This also forced Malik Hairston into playing the 4 quite a bit, and while Malik had a great ability on the offensive boards and was quite athletic, again, being 6’6 it was not ideal. We have been a team that struggled with its lack of height and never seemed to try and do things differently or try and give our taller players a chance to develop. Ray Schafer barely played a minute his last year at Oregon, he did not even get into the game on senior day. Many people loved Ray, but many people also questioned his abilities as a player. I was not one of those people. Even if I had never met Ray Schafer and became his friend, I knew the guy was in love with basketball. His truck was called “Rim Rat” and had a Rat dunking a basketball on the side. He would constantly be in the gym and working on his game. Often, he would be seen biking around campus holding a basketball in each hand (do not ask me how this is possible). True, Ray did sometimes look lost offensively, and his FT shooting was a weakness, but I have to wonder why a big man as athletic and hardworking as Ray would not get a chance to play a role on our team. Having a big man in the middle of the zone, clogging the paint is a huge advantage. Do you wonder why some college players block so many shots? That is a huge reason. Why could Ray not at least play 12-15 minutes a game and given us that defensive presence? All I know is that Ernie was not willing to do that.

Like many Duck fans, I had given up on Ernie Kent a long time ago. Their is much more to say about him, but many people did not like the way he handled himself. I have never really heard a guy who played for him talk trash about him straight up, but I do know a lot of players did not come back to Eugene to play in the summer for a reason. He ran Champ Oguchi out of school for playing for the Nigerian National Team, which I thought was ridiculous. His disciplinary tactics seemingly made little sense, and constantly I feel like he held players back. Seeing Malik Hairston kill the NBADL has been a downer for the fact that he never seemed to live up to his prophecy of “Carmelo-izing” our school. Bryce Taylor, a player who had one of the better performances I had ever seen when he went 11-11 from the field with 7 triples in the Pac-10 championship game. To me, there was no reason that Bryce should not have had a monster senior year. To me, he had as much NBA promise as either Malik or Maarty. Look at the combine numbers of both Bryce and Malik, and you could see they were monster athletes. The biggest question I have is how we got to this point? We have a football program that is becoming absolutely top notch, we have the backing of Nike and now we have a basketball team seemingly in ruins. We are going to have so much trouble this year, and I have no idea when it will end. Top notch football recruits come to our school from as far as Florida, but for some reason we have not been landing them in basketball. With the opening of Matthew Knight Court this season, having a team that will struggle as much as this group will be disheartening. There is no doubt that had Dunigan stayed, things would look much brighter. Well, sorry for the rant, but I am incredibly worried about our basketball teams future. I wish all the best for Dana Altman, and really hope that he can bring our hoops program anywhere near our football program.

I think some of you guys know me, and my love for the Ducks, and this stings. Dunigan was a player who I was elated to have sign with us, he was a 5 star Center recruit who signed in summer, it was something that had just not happened to us. He was the biggest signing we had since Aaron Brooks, who was just finishing his time at UO. Dunigan became a McDonald’s All-American, and finally seemed like a true post player we had never had. We had gone through Ian Crosswhite, a 7 foot Austrailian who at times could be a huge match-up nightmare, but travelled more than Angelina Jolie. Ian unfortunately was kicked off the team due to unknown reasons, but rumors went from his excessive drinking (he would commonly be seen at bars drinking straight out of the pitcher) to possible nose candy consumption. Either way, Ian never lived up to expectations, which were NBA level. Another post player who at times looked beastly was Ivan Johnson, who I believe still plays in the D-League. A JUCO transfer with a troubled past, Johnson had a big frame and definite athleticism to go with it. He at times looked like a man amongst boys. But, after his one inconsistent season, he too was kicked off of the team and out of the school. I will not go into the rumors, but it was just another let down for our team. This time, it seems that Dunigan chose to leave the school, but the rumors of indiscretion on the part of our team just makes it seem like he is again just leaving our program before his time.

Like many Duck fans, I had a love and hate relationship with our former coach, Ernie Kent. I felt like he was arrogant, but he seemed to also have an ability to find some hidden gems, and two Elite 8 appearances, in terms of our school, were very impressive. Numerous NBA players and many other memorable players, my favorite being James Davis, a 5’10 SG with one of the sweetest strokes you have ever seen. I was at Oregon at a time where we had a bevy of 7 footers or damn close, Crosswhite, Mitch Platt who was 6-10 and true 7 footers Matt Short and my friend Ray Schafer. Unfortunately, while many of them got PT early in their careers, in the end they all seemed to find a way into Ernie’s dog house. Maarty Leunen ideally should have played 4, or even on the wing, but he was forced to play in the post for his Oregon career. He was deservedly drafted, and plays in Europe, but Maarty could have been even better if he were not forced to play 5 for his career. This also forced Malik Hairston into playing the 4 quite a bit, and while Malik had a great ability on the offensive boards and was quite athletic, again, being 6’6 it was not ideal. We have been a team that struggled with its lack of height and never seemed to try and do things differently or try and give our taller players a chance to develop. Ray Schafer barely played a minute his last year at Oregon, he did not even get into the game on senior day. Many people loved Ray, but many people also questioned his abilities as a player. I was not one of those people. Even if I had never met Ray Schafer and became his friend, I knew the guy was in love with basketball. His truck was called “Rim Rat” and had a Rat dunking a basketball on the side. He would constantly be in the gym and working on his game. Often, he would be seen biking around campus holding a basketball in each hand (do not ask me how this is possible). True, Ray did sometimes look lost offensively, and his FT shooting was a weakness, but I have to wonder why a big man as athletic and hardworking as Ray would not get a chance to play a role on our team. Having a big man in the middle of the zone, clogging the paint is a huge advantage. Do you wonder why some college players block so many shots? That is a huge reason. Why could Ray not at least play 12-15 minutes a game and given us that defensive presence? All I know is that Ernie was not willing to do that.

Like many Duck fans, I had given up on Ernie Kent a long time ago. Their is much more to say about him, but many people did not like the way he handled himself. I have never really heard a guy who played for him talk trash about him straight up, but I do know a lot of players did not come back to Eugene to play in the summer for a reason. He ran Champ Oguchi out of school for playing for the Nigerian National Team, which I thought was ridiculous. His disciplinary tactics seemingly made little sense, and constantly I feel like he held players back. Seeing Malik Hairston kill the NBADL has been a downer for the fact that he never seemed to live up to his prophecy of “Carmelo-izing” our school. Bryce Taylor, a player who had one of the better performances I had ever seen when he went 11-11 from the field with 7 triples in the Pac-10 championship game. To me, there was no reason that Bryce should not have had a monster senior year. To me, he had as much NBA promise as either Malik or Maarty. Look at the combine numbers of both Bryce and Malik, and you could see they were monster athletes. The biggest question I have is how we got to this point? We have a football program that is becoming absolutely top notch, we have the backing of Nike and now we have a basketball team seemingly in ruins. We are going to have so much trouble this year, and I have no idea when it will end. Top notch football recruits come to our school from as far as Florida, but for some reason we have not been landing them in basketball. With the opening of Matthew Knight Court this season, having a team that will struggle as much as this group will be disheartening. There is no doubt that had Dunigan stayed, things would look much brighter. Well, sorry for the rant, but I am incredibly worried about our basketball teams future. I wish all the best for Dana Altman, and really hope that he can bring our hoops program anywhere near our football program.