Add Malcolm Armstead of the Oregon Ducks to a growing list of Pac-12 departures. Armstead wants to return to a place closer to his native home of Alabama for his final season and he has been granted his release, the Eugene Register Guard reports.
This is rough but not damaging news for Oregon, who looked like they were trending upward under Dana Altman. Armstead was one of the best assist-makers and pickpockets in the league, but he was not an offensively efficient player when he was on the floor. However he did give opposing point guards fits this season like Brandon Smith for Cal and Jarrett Mann for Stanford.
The pressure now falls on sophomore Johnathan Loyd and incoming frosh Bruce Barron to man the point. Loyd was not too bad at distributing and stealing the ball himself, so the dropoff might not be as sizable as some people think it could be.
For the Bears and Cardinal, it could mean a big shift and a decent point guard advantage next year. Something to keep your eye on, particularly since Oregon only went 1-3 against the Bay Area schools last year.
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