Dana Altman criticizes low fan turnout following Oregon's season-ending loss

Dana Altman didn’t pull any punches during his final press conference of the season.

In the minutes following Oregon’s season-ending 61-58 loss to Wisconsin in the quarterfinals of the NIT, Altman met with reporters and voiced his frustration with how the season has unfolded. The Ducks landed at No. 21 in the preseason AP Poll but saw their season end at 21-15 on Tuesday after missing out on the NCAA tournament for the second straight season.

Midway through his press conference, Altman was asked if he thinks Oregon needs to bolster its staff next season in order to get back on track.

While Altman didn’t necessarily answer the specific question, he unleashed a scathing critique of the Ducks’ fanbase after the athletic department announced an attendance of 3,384 for Tuesday’s game.

“That goes in the evaluation. What are we not getting? What are we not doing? If that means more people, I’ll go to (Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens) and beg. But you see the commitment that Wisconsin makes with the cheerleaders, the band. We make a commitment, don’t get me wrong. But you can just see how important it is to them. It’s important to me.

“We should have more people here. Alright. I mean, the guys played hard. 3,300 people — that’s not good enough. If it’s me, then get rid of me. If you need somebody else to be a promoter, to do something. But 3,300 people is embarrassing. I’m not in a very good mood, you can tell.”

“If It’s me, then make the change. Make the change. Somebody will hire me somewhere. I’ll go coach junior college ball. I love junior college ball. Those guys are dogs. They want to be in the gym all the time. I love those guys. But 3,300 people? For Wisconsin? I’m disappointed. And I appreciate the people who came. The 3,300 people who did come, great. I sure appreciate them. The people who have stuck with us. Again, I’m not a promoter. I’m not out in public. I don’t have Twitter and all that stuff. My job is to coach.”

This isn’t the first time this season that Altman has voiced his displeasure with Oregon’s fan turnout.

Following the Ducks’ Dec. 14 win over UC Riverside, he provided a self-deprecating, tongue-in-cheek answer when asked about the announced attendance of 4,738, which served as the second-lowest turnout for an Oregon men’s home game since Matthew Knight Arena opened in 2011.

Later in his Tuesday press conference, Altman acknowledged the factors that might have led to the paltry fan turnout against the Badgers.

“I know this is the NIT, not the (NCAA tournament). I understand that,” Altman said. “But our guys work hard. I’m just a little disappointed. But (fans) are disappointed in us. We didn’t win. So, it works both ways. We didn’t win enough games and I understand the fans’ disappointment.”

Altman was asked if, in the future, Oregon will potentially pursue blue-chip recruits who can provide the type of star power that many fans believe the program has lacked in recent seasons.

For much of this season, the Ducks have been linked to 5-star guard Bronny James, the son of NBA superstar LeBron James.

While Altman did not mention any specific recruits by name, he quickly dismissed that notion.

“We don’t recruit to put fans in the seats,” Altman said. “We recruit to win basketball games. We recruit to get guys here who want to complete. Okay. We had great crowds with Dillon Brooks, who was No. 150, and Jordan Bell, who was No. 99. Chris Boucher was on nobody’s list. (Payton Pritchard) was maybe our highest-rated guy at No. 56. Those guys just played hard and we won. And so we’re gonna get winners.

“We’re gonna get competitors. And if people appreciate that, great. And they don’t, then like I said… But our program is going to be about guys who want to be in the gym, who want to compete here, and who want to get better. If winning is not enough, then like I said, you need to go a different direction.”