Oregon Ducks Keith Smith Will Seek Transfer

The Oregon Ducks will have another hole to fill in 2018 with Keith Smith announcing his intention to transfer from the University of Oregon.

Head Coach Dana Altman announced early Tuesday afternoon that Freshman Troy Brown will look to start his professional career and make the jump into the NBA Draft. Roughly an hour after, Sophomore Keith Smith announced he will also look to play elsewhere.

It has been a rough two seasons for Smith, who has been primarily a bench player for the Oregon Ducks. Injuries have hurt his development. He averaged 2 points and just under 2 rebounds per game last season for the Ducks. He did find his way into the lineup as a Defensive replacement at key times during the last two seasons.

With the departure of two scholarship athletes, Altman has some juggling to do. The Ducks now have three open scholarships for next season. Key contributors in Abu Kigab and Victor Bailey could find themselves in a Starting Lineup spot if things go right. Altman is also well known for finding the right type of Graduate Transfers to fill the roles needed to compete.

Last season it was Elijah Brown and MiKyle McIntosh.

Altman will also contend with a similar situation to 2017-18 in finding early consistency that can push the team into the postseason. Next year he has key commits in Bol Bol and Louis King. With the departures, the Oregon Ducks have one player with ties to the Final Four team from 2016-17.

Payton Pritchard will return for his Junior Season next year.

Next: Troy Brown Will Enter NBA Draft

The Oregon Ducks made it into the NIT this past season losing to Marquette in the second round.