ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Dana Altman announced his retirement after 16 seasons as Oregon's men's basketball coach on Wednesday, exactly one day before he was scheduled to appear here at Big Ten Media Day inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. Oregon's season starts two weeks from Monday, which is among the reasons the announcement was met with some raised eyebrows, in part because this kind of thing has developed into something of a trend.
This is the third straight year a power-conference coach with a Final Four on his resume has retired late in the calendar and well outside of the normal firing-and-hiring cycle. In 2024, it was Virginia's Tony Bennett who walked away on Oct. 18. In 2025, it was Auburn's Bruce Pearl who stepped down on Sept. 22.
In 2026, it's Oregon's Dana Altman calling it a career on Oct. 7. On X, where everybody is free to share opinions, sensible or otherwise, speculation ran rampant. Was Altman doing this now just to trap Oregon's players because, I mean, how many transfer options are even available in the middle of October?
Was Altman doing this now just to ensure the only option Oregon had was to promote his assistant, Tony Stubblefield? Was Altman doing this now just to keep the direct deposits coming throughout the offseason, always with the intent to walk away before things tip? Unprompted, Altman offered an explanation during Wednesday's press conference that spanned roughly an hour.
To me, it sounded sincere. Without getting specific, Altman cited health concerns. Meanwhile, longtime Oregon-based columnist John Canzano, forever as connected as anybody in the state, reported he was told that Altman had to lie down on the hardwood multiple times last week just to get through a practice.
"I'm not as healthy as I should be," Altman acknowledged. "Or as I want to be." Is it life-threatening? Altman insisted it's not.
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