Oregon's rise to a west coast hoops power came on the backs of one-and-done players. Grad transfers like Arsalan Kazemi, Mike Moser and Jason Calliste helped lay the groundwork for the likes of Dillon Brooks, Jordan Bell and Tyler Dorsey to take the program to previously unseen heights.

Now, in order to reach the next level, it appears the Ducks will rely on more one-and-done talents — just of a different sort. Oregon currently has four players signed in its No. 2 ranked class in the 2018 cycle. Among those signatures are five-star prospects Bol Bol and Louis King. Each player is considered to have the upside to spend just one season in Eugene on their ways to the NBA.

The 2017-18 season provided a trial run of sorts for next year, when they will fully embrace the bring-in-top-tier-NBA-talent strategy that has brought Duke, Arizona and Kentucky a host of league titles and NCAA championships. And let's be frank, the emergence — or lack there of — of Troy Brown wasn't exactly the result the staff probably had hoped for.

Brown brought many of the same distinctions to town that Bol and King will this winter. All three were consensus five-star recruits and were invited to participate in a slew of All-American games and camps.

And yet, this season — which may very well be his only with the Ducks — didn't match the lofty standards set. The Ducks finished with the fewest number of wins since Dana Altman's first year, and the 6-foot-7 forward was up and down. Ultimately, he was left off of the league's all-freshmen team despite being the second-highest rated incoming recruit in the Pac-12.

He did manage to average 11.3 points, 6.2. rebounds and 3.2 assists per game during his freshman campaign. But when the season was on the line in five Pac-12 tourney and NIT games, those numbers dipped to 7.6 points per game, 5.6 rebounds per game and 3.2 assists per game.

Let me clarify that I'm not placing the entirety of the blame on Brown, or even the majority of it. Brown was asked to take on a ton as an 18-year old on a program coming off its best season ever. He was asked to shoulder the load despite the departure of six of the team's top seven scorers from that team, and to do surrounded by players that had largely never played in a major conference. That's a tough ask.

In fact, the Ducks leaned more heavily on first year players with the program than ever before under Altman. Seventy-six-percent of the team's scoring this season came from players not with the team last season. For perspective, in 2016-17, 85.2 percent of team's scoring came from returning players and in 2015-16, the the team returned 66.1 percent of its scoring.

The only team that comes close to that number of incoming offensive production was the 2013-14 season led by transfers Joe Young, Moser and Calliste. That team returned just 27.8 percent of its scoring from the year before. But unlike this year, that team's foundation was built around fourth and fifth year players, just ones who'd not previously donned Oregon jerseys.

Still, if Oregon wants to continue to be a destination school for the Browns, Bols and Kings of the world, the 2018-19 season needs to go more smoothly. We know what the expectations will be next season with a touted recruiting class and with top rivals Arizona and USC in shambles. Oregon will be a hot name to win the conference and contend for another deep tournament run.

Living up to those expectations will be largely determined by how much they're able to wring out of Bol and King.

The good news? As of March 19, that team looks to have a much firmer foundation than the one Brown inherited. For starters, Brown, another former elite recruit, could join them to provide Eugene with a trio of first round talent. And nothing is stopping Payton Pritchard from returning for a third year or Victor Bailey or Kenny Wooten from strapping it on for a second go either.

Earlier this month, Altman was asked about possible NBA rules that would lift restrictions for players making the leap out of high school. He deflected questions by saying "You're probably asking the wrong guy. This is our first time though it."

By next March, Altman won't have that out. He and his staff will be wrapping up season two with a batch of highly touted frosh. One wonders what his impressions of dealing with those type of players will be then.

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