Oregon Ducks women’s basketball coach Kelly Graves has seen a lot of familiar faces depart his program in the past 24 hours.
First it was Nyara Sabally announcing her intention to declare for the WNBA draft. That was followed by three players announcing their plans to enter the transfer portal: Sydney Parrish, Kylee Watson, and Maddie Scherr.
While any of those three could return to Oregon, right now it is clear coach Graves will need to turn his attention squarely toward the transfer portal to ensure he once again has a competitive roster in Eugene, after a disappointing 21-22 season.
However, Graves’ attention is at least partly consumed by the transfer portal on the men’s side right now, as his son, Will, recently announced his plan to leave his walk-on spot at Gonzaga and enter the portal.
Gonzaga G Will Graves has entered the transfer portal. Grad transfer. https://t.co/KsBQigAIfy
— Verbal Commits (@VerbalCommits) March 27, 2022
Graves began his college career at Lane Community College in Eugene, playing close to home after graduating from South Eugene High School. He transferred to Gonzaga after one season, getting a chance to play under coach Mark Few – a longtime friend of coach Graves after their time together coaching in Spokane.
Graves grew up near Few’s kids, including Joe who was a walk-on at Gonzaga this past season, as well as the Lloyd family and their son, Liam, who entered the portal this year after spending time at Grand Canyon.
Liam’s father, Tommy Lloyd, was the associate head coach at Gonzaga for a decade before taking over as the head coach at Arizona this past season.
Graves played 76 total minutes in 39 games for Gonzaga, appearing at the very end of blowouts and launching three pointers, much to the delight of the crowd. He finished his Gonzaga career 7-for-20 from beyond the arc, good for a solid 35% rate.
Graves is likely looking for an opportunity to play meaningful minutes, which makes Dana Altman’s program at Oregon an unlikely destination – although a reunion with dad might be a fun storyline, even if they are not in the same program.
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