NBA News NBA News, Match Reports and Updates 
Roughly 24 hours before he and his Oregon men’s basketball players were set to speak at Big Ten media days in Rosemont, Illinois, Dana Altman decided that after nearly 40 years as a Division I head coach, it was time to call it a career.
The longtime Ducks coach retired effective immediately on Wednesday, Oct. 7, only 26 days before they tip off their 2026-27 season against Montana.
Advertisement
The fact that the news is only so stunning says quite a bit about where college basketball finds itself in 2026.
More: Oregon basketball coach Dana Altman retiring less than one month before season starts
The early fall surprise that’s long been a staple of American politics, with an unexpected piece of unsavory news about a candidate dropping in the final weeks before Election Day, has come to college basketball in a different color in recent years — namely, with prominent coaches abruptly hanging up their whistles right before a new season.
Two years ago, Tony Bennett shocked much of the sport by retiring from Virginia at just 55 years old, and doing so on Oct. 17, just 20 days before the Cavaliers’ season-opener. Last year, and fresh off his second Final Four appearance in seven seasons, Bruce Pearl stepped away at Auburn to take an ambassador role in the university’s athletic department shortly after preseason practices began in late September.
Advertisement
Now, after weeks and months of speculation over who might follow in their footsteps, we have our answer.
In a vacuum, Altman’s retirement is understandable. He’s 68 years old. He’s enjoyed a long, successful and lucrative career. His legacy at Oregon and in the broader college basketball world is intact as a brilliant tactical mind who was a reliable winner everywhere he coached, including at Oregon, which he led to four conference championships and the 2017 Final Four, the program’s first since 1939.
But for all of those achievements, things were beginning to trend in the wrong direction. Last season, the Ducks went 12-20, marking the first time they’d finished with a losing record or fewer than 20 wins under Altman. Despite some nice pickups like San Francisco…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/dana-altmans-retirement-offseasons-twilight-191222249.html
Author :
Publish date : 2026-10-07 19:12:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
