Dana Altman Loses Another Oregon Duck to the Transfer Portal

Along with guard Jackson Shelstad and forward Kwame Evans Jr., Oregon Ducks forward Dezdrick Lindsay will be entering his name in the NCAA transfer portal. The announcement was made by his agent, EZ Sports Group's Ethan Coury.

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The 6-6 and 215-pound high-flying athlete averaged 5.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game in 20.5 minutes per game in 2025-26. He started eight of his 32 games played with the Ducks.

Oregon forward Dezdrick Lindsay, right, puts up a shot over Wisconsin guard John Blackwell as the Oregon Ducks host the Wisconsin Badgers on Feb. 25, 2026, at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Lindsay received a medical waiver from the NCAA for an extra year of eligibility after missing the entire 2024-25 season with a shoulder injury.

The Louisville, Kentucky, native started his college career at the junior college level with Florida SouthWestern State during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. As a sophomore, Lindsay was named to the FCSAA All-State team after scoring a team-high 16.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.

Mar 10, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dana Altman during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

Dana Altman's Tenure in the Pacific Northwest

Coach Dana Altman is coming off his worst season during his Oregon tenure, finishing 12-20 overall and 5-15 in Big Ten Conference play. That was his first losing record during his time in the Pacific Northwest, his first since 1995-96 when he was coaching the Creighton Bluejays in the Missouri Valley Conference.

The worst stretch of games came during the middle of the season, when the Ducks went on a 10-game losing streak. That went from Jan. 5 to Feb. 9 during Big Ten competition.

In 16 seasons in Eugene, Oregon, Altman has only missed the NCAA Tournament a total of six times. He holds an overall record of 382-182 (67.7 winning percentage) since taking the job back in 2010.

Oregon guard Wei Lin, left, presses past Wisconsin guard Nick Boyd as the Oregon Ducks host the Wisconsin Badgers on Feb. 25, 2026, at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oregon's 2026-27 Current Roster

The 2026-27 roster currently stands with nine of the 15 allowed scholarship spots filled:

Guards: Redshirt freshman JJ Frakes, junior Jamari Phillips, junior Wei Lin

Forwards: True freshman Kendre Harrison, true freshman Tajh Ariza, redshirt sophomore Efe Vatan, junior Luke Johnson (walk-on), senior Devon Pryor, senior Sean Stewart

Centers: Senior Ege Demir

Obviously, the departure of center Nate Bittle to the 2027 NBA Draft leaves a glaring positional need to be filled through the transfer portal for the Ducks. A rim presence and someone for Lin to feed in the paint is right at the top of the to-do list this offseason.

In the backcourt, the losses of Shelstad as well as guard Takai Simpkins, who has run out of college eligibility, will be hard to replicate. Lin had his ups and downs throughout the season, as he still looks to translate his game to the American style of play. He will need support when the portal officially opens on April 7 and closes on April 21.

If Altman were to be relieved of his coaching duties, that would open the possibility for four-star recruit Tajh Ariza out of the 2026 recruiting class to look elsewhere. Since three-star recruit Kendre Harrison is going to Oregon to play tight end for football coach Dan Lanning, a coaching change on the basketball side likely wouldn't affect his college decision.

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