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Collegiate sports have changed a lot since Oregon women's basketball coach Kelly Graves took the helm in Eugene in 2014. It's changed even more since Graves first started coaching in the late 1980s and became the head coach of Division I programs in the late '90s.
With programs all around the country struggling with player retention — and some like Tennessee and Iowa State losing almost their entire rosters in the span of a few days following the 2025-26 season — the Ducks' offseason has been a success so far, per Graves.
The Ducks' roster has stabilized over the past two offseasons, becoming one of a few programs nationally not to lose a single player to the transfer portal in 2025 and retaining every starter possible and six rotational players in 2026.
Chief among those returnees are star point guard Katie Fiso and forward Ehis Etute, who took March by storm late in the year as sophomores this past season.
"I think it means everything," Graves said. "I think it shows that they like what's going on here. They like what we've built. They like the culture. They feel that we can continue to get better. I think it was a vote of confidence in their teammates, in each other, in themselves, and then in our coaching staff and what we have to offer here. So it meant everything to me, personally. You hate to lose anybody, but the fact that group is back, I think really bodes well."
The Ducks also return starters Ari Long and Sofia Bell and bring back reserves Avary Cain and Filippa Tilliander, as well as midseason transfer Mallory Heyer, who sat out last season after enrolling at Oregon in January by way of Minnesota.
That group, Graves says, has had an incredibly strong run of spring workouts.
"They could have maybe gone and gotten more money, a couple of them, at different institutions," Graves said. "But our seven kids that we have back, I'm not sure we've ever had a better spring group. There's no dead weight, so to speak. Everybody that is here is in the rotation, is playing, is gonna play, and it's made the level of the workouts great."
After a few years of struggling with retaining its best players on a year-to-year basis, the program has made some tweaks and put more emphasis into how they go about player retention.
Those changes have paid off with the return of Fiso and Etute, in particular.
"You do, kind of, have to re-recruit them in a crazy sort of way," Graves said. "Not traditional recruiting, but I think we tried to let them understand how good they might have it here ... Our players understood they're probably in the right spot where we're able to use their skill set and that athletic ability in the way that might be best for them. I think in Katie's instance, certainly, that was the case."
Fiso blossomed into a star with the Ducks after some ups and downs, averaging close to 20 points over Oregon's last nine games and finishing the year as its leading scorer and one of the nation's assist leaders.
Etute, who began the year on the bench, averaged nearly a double-double during Big Ten Conference play and 17.7 points and 10.9 rebounds per game over the Ducks' last nine games. Fiso said herself following Oregon's NCAA second-round loss to No. 1 seed Texas that keeping the team together would be an offseason priority.
With that goal accomplished, Graves looked to supplement the roster with some height and depth after losing five players, mostly reserves, to the portal. The Ducks signed four-star freshman Kennedy Holman, who originally signed with Florida before a coaching change, and 6-foot-2 forward Hilary Fuller from Belmont, but were unable to add any others players.
Graves said Oregon didn't have the funds to pursue a top-tier center in the portal and were mostly looking for depth but is likely done building its roster ahead of 2026-27.
Now the goal becomes quickly integrating a four-player freshman class that includes three nationally rated recruits in 6-4 center Emilia Krstevski, scoring ace Brooklynn Haywood and Holman, as well as three-star guard La'u Pele Falatea.
Krstevski, in particular, becomes one of Oregon's most important players given her size, despite being a freshman.
But it will be behind its stars, not from a splash in the transfer portal, that Oregon hopes to see improvement as it looks to take another step forward as a program after making the second round of the NCAA tournament each of the last two years.
Graves said Fiso, in particular, is just "scratching the surface" of what she can do.
"I think she's even got more to give," Graves said. "She's working her butt off. She knows where she's got to get better. And one way, I know she's really working on her perimeter shooting. The season just made her believe that, 'Hey, I can be one of the best players in the country.' Once you start to believe that, then your potential for growth becomes even greater.
"I think (Fiso and Etute) are really going to flourish this next season. Now there will be a target on them to some degree, but I think they're both going to be able to handle that. We've got players around them that are going to keep other teams honest, which is good. But I think in Katie's case, I think she knows that she has a chance now to elevate the whole program to even another level."
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football and women’s basketball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Kelly Graves talks retaining Katie Fiso, Ehis Etute, Oregon offseason
Continue reading...
With programs all around the country struggling with player retention — and some like Tennessee and Iowa State losing almost their entire rosters in the span of a few days following the 2025-26 season — the Ducks' offseason has been a success so far, per Graves.
The Ducks' roster has stabilized over the past two offseasons, becoming one of a few programs nationally not to lose a single player to the transfer portal in 2025 and retaining every starter possible and six rotational players in 2026.
Chief among those returnees are star point guard Katie Fiso and forward Ehis Etute, who took March by storm late in the year as sophomores this past season.
"I think it means everything," Graves said. "I think it shows that they like what's going on here. They like what we've built. They like the culture. They feel that we can continue to get better. I think it was a vote of confidence in their teammates, in each other, in themselves, and then in our coaching staff and what we have to offer here. So it meant everything to me, personally. You hate to lose anybody, but the fact that group is back, I think really bodes well."
The Ducks also return starters Ari Long and Sofia Bell and bring back reserves Avary Cain and Filippa Tilliander, as well as midseason transfer Mallory Heyer, who sat out last season after enrolling at Oregon in January by way of Minnesota.
That group, Graves says, has had an incredibly strong run of spring workouts.
"They could have maybe gone and gotten more money, a couple of them, at different institutions," Graves said. "But our seven kids that we have back, I'm not sure we've ever had a better spring group. There's no dead weight, so to speak. Everybody that is here is in the rotation, is playing, is gonna play, and it's made the level of the workouts great."
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After a few years of struggling with retaining its best players on a year-to-year basis, the program has made some tweaks and put more emphasis into how they go about player retention.
Those changes have paid off with the return of Fiso and Etute, in particular.
"You do, kind of, have to re-recruit them in a crazy sort of way," Graves said. "Not traditional recruiting, but I think we tried to let them understand how good they might have it here ... Our players understood they're probably in the right spot where we're able to use their skill set and that athletic ability in the way that might be best for them. I think in Katie's instance, certainly, that was the case."
Fiso blossomed into a star with the Ducks after some ups and downs, averaging close to 20 points over Oregon's last nine games and finishing the year as its leading scorer and one of the nation's assist leaders.
Etute, who began the year on the bench, averaged nearly a double-double during Big Ten Conference play and 17.7 points and 10.9 rebounds per game over the Ducks' last nine games. Fiso said herself following Oregon's NCAA second-round loss to No. 1 seed Texas that keeping the team together would be an offseason priority.
With that goal accomplished, Graves looked to supplement the roster with some height and depth after losing five players, mostly reserves, to the portal. The Ducks signed four-star freshman Kennedy Holman, who originally signed with Florida before a coaching change, and 6-foot-2 forward Hilary Fuller from Belmont, but were unable to add any others players.
Graves said Oregon didn't have the funds to pursue a top-tier center in the portal and were mostly looking for depth but is likely done building its roster ahead of 2026-27.
Now the goal becomes quickly integrating a four-player freshman class that includes three nationally rated recruits in 6-4 center Emilia Krstevski, scoring ace Brooklynn Haywood and Holman, as well as three-star guard La'u Pele Falatea.
Krstevski, in particular, becomes one of Oregon's most important players given her size, despite being a freshman.
But it will be behind its stars, not from a splash in the transfer portal, that Oregon hopes to see improvement as it looks to take another step forward as a program after making the second round of the NCAA tournament each of the last two years.
Graves said Fiso, in particular, is just "scratching the surface" of what she can do.
"I think she's even got more to give," Graves said. "She's working her butt off. She knows where she's got to get better. And one way, I know she's really working on her perimeter shooting. The season just made her believe that, 'Hey, I can be one of the best players in the country.' Once you start to believe that, then your potential for growth becomes even greater.
"I think (Fiso and Etute) are really going to flourish this next season. Now there will be a target on them to some degree, but I think they're both going to be able to handle that. We've got players around them that are going to keep other teams honest, which is good. But I think in Katie's case, I think she knows that she has a chance now to elevate the whole program to even another level."
You must be registered for see images attach
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football and women’s basketball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Kelly Graves talks retaining Katie Fiso, Ehis Etute, Oregon offseason
Continue reading...
