Former St. John's guard LJ Figueroa commits to Oregon as transfer due to 'circumstances out of my control'

One of the top remaining transfers on the market in the 2020 college basketball recruiting cycle announced his destination on Saturday. Former St. John's guard LJ Figueroa said in a social media post that he plans to join Oregon. 

"First and foremost, I want to thank St. John's for the last two seasons; it was an incredible time both personally and athletically," Figueroa wrote. "I've truly enjoyed NYC, the fans, the atmosphere and most importantly my teammates. I'm addition, I want to thank coach Mullin for recruiting me and coach Anderson for this past season. Unfortunately, circumstances which were out of my control forced me to transfer and look for a new opportunity. I'm looking forward to joining the University of Oregon and competing for a national championship. Go Ducks!"

Figueroa averaged 14.5 points on 37.3% 3-point shooting in two seasons as a starter at St. John's. But the former junior college transfer is also known as a quality defender after averaging 1.9 steals per game over his two seasons with the Red Storm. He was a top-100 prospect in the 2017 high school class and could end up as an impact player for Ducks, who are the defending Pac-12 champions. Figueroa has one season of eligibility left and would need a waiver to play immediately. 

Oregon is replacing leading scorer and Pac-12 Player of the Year Payton Pritchard.

The Ducks have become a common transfer destination under Dana Altman, who is entering his 11th season as coach. Leading returning scorer Chris Duarte is a junior college product. New Mexico graduate transfer Anthony Mathis started 21 games for the Ducks last season in his final season of eligibility while UNLV graduate transfer Shakur Juiston started 25 games.

Oregon also landed Saint Peter's transfer Aaron Estrada, the reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year, in this recruiting cycle. Estrada will also need a waiver to play in the 2020-21 season.