It would have been nearly inconceivable to predict that Oregon Ducks center Kel’el Ware wouldn’t make the Pac-12 All-Freshman team at the beginning of the season.
Ware was a 5-star prospect and one of the highest rated recruits in Oregon history, a testament to the strength of Dana Altman’s recruiting to pull this young man from Arkansas and bring him all the way to Eugene.
Mock drafts often had Ware as a lottery pick – and while he’s still featured in a handful of places the majority believe he is a strong candidate to return to college after a disappointing freshman season that saw him only make four starts and average just 16 minutes per game.
Ware still has at least one game left to play in the Pac-12 Tournament, but his regular season averages of 6.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks weren’t enough for him to make the five man All Pac-12 Freshman team.
In fact, two other players – Kylan Boswell at Arizona and Grant Newell at Cal – were listed as honorable mentions, meaning Ware didn’t even receive three votes for consideration.
Here is a look at the five freshmen who were named to the Pac-12 Freshman team over Ware, including an in-state competitor and a pair of Bruins from UCLA: