On Wednesday, Oregon head men’s basketball coach Dana Altman received a three-year contract extension, keeping him in Eugene through the 2019-2020 season.
“I’m excited,” Altman said before Wednesday’s practice. “I appreciate the university, in particular (athletic director) Rob (Mullens), for having the confidence in our staff to try to build something here.”
Altman initially signed a seven-year contract with Oregon in 2010 that was set to run through the 2016-17 season. Before joining the Ducks, Altman was the head coach at Creighton for 16 seasons.
“This is a great place,” Altman said of Eugene. “I’ve been really fortunate the last 20 years coaching at Creighton and here.”
Altman’s teams have gotten progressively better in his three-plus years at Oregon. In 2010-11, the Ducks went 21-18 and won the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) championship over Altman’s former team, Creighton. The next season, Oregon went 24-10 and reached the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). Last season, Oregon went 28-9 and reached the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA tournament.
The Ducks don’t look like they’ll plateau this season, either. They’re currently 4-0 and ranked No. 14 in the AP poll.
“Dana has been masterful at elevating Oregon basketball and generating renewed excitement for our program,” Mullens told GoDucks.com. “He and his family are a great fit at Oregon and we are pleased to extend our commitment to them.”
“Numbers speak for themselves,” senior guard Johnathan Loyd said. “He’s improved every year. He’s just a great coach. He gets good players here. He deserves (the extension).”
Redshirt junior guard Joseph Young tranfered from Houston before this season, so he’s hardly played under Altman. But he’s liked what he’s seen from his coach during his first couple of months with the Ducks.
“Good coach,” Young said. “He wants you to get better.”
Altman pointed to another benefit coming from the extension, and that’s in the area of recruiting. High school or transfer players often like to know that the coach who recruits them will be with the team long-term if they decide to accept the school’s offer.
“I think a lot of recruits ask that, ‘Where are you at in your contract?’” Altman said. “Whether it’s me or anybody else.”
Altman doesn’t plan on treating himself now that he has a contract extension but he said he will celebrate with his family this Thanksgiving weekend.
“My daughter’s coming into town today and my sons will be here tomorrow, so I’ll celebrate with them,” Altman said. “It will be great to have them here.”
Follow Victor Flores on Twitter @vflores415