Team Profile: Oregon - Contenders or Pretenders

What will this year's Oregon team bring to the Pac-10 race. Oregon has been the mysterious team over the past two years recruiting several big recruits but never being able to put it all together. Aaron Brooks, Malik Hairston, and Chamberlain Oquchi have all played wildly inconsistent over the past two years and UO teams have gone from NCAA Tournament mainstays to NIT doormats.

The strength of this team this year is their senior leadership with Brooks and Hairston. They have been together for a few years and they are poised to make a run at being the fourth team in the Pac-10 to qualify for the NCAA tourney. Can they put it together? That will be the question.

Oregon is the sexy dark horse pick by many sports bloggers and analyists across the country to pull off some upsets in the Pac-10 and have a big year. Starting out 4-0 has made many in Eugene believe that this team is for real. Example being that at this point last year they were 2-2 and had just lost to Portland State. This year, Oregon blew out PSU by almost 30.

Interesting detail unknown by many: For Aaron Brooks suckerpunching of Ryan Appleby, Brooks will be suspended in the first game that UO plays against UW this year. HA!

Projection: A fourth place finish in the Pac-10, with a shot to sneak into the top 3 if they play out of their minds. They will qualify for the NCAA's.