THE GOOD NEWS
Virtually everyone from this season's team will be back in 2008-09. Leading scorer Derick Nelson should be even better heading into his final season, and the Golden Grizzlies also have a top-notch freshman class coming in that features G Blake Cushingberry and Fs Drew Maynard and Jay Thames.

THE BAD NEWS
The team will sorely miss G Brandon Cassise, who was one of Oakland's leading 3-point shooters and overall scorers. And although Oakland loses just two seniors, there is also the fact that this will be the same team that was a disappointing 17-14 this season. The Golden Grizzlies have to be careful not to put too much pressure on their incoming freshman stars. And those rookies coming in also means current players will be losing some playing time, so there could be a chemistry concern.

KEY RETURNEES
Oakland will have nine of its top 10 scorers returning next year, led by Gs Derick Nelson and Johnathon Jones. Nelson can score at will, while Jones became one of the Summit's top point guards this past season. Also back is F Erik Kangas, who averaged 14.7 points but missed time because of an injury. When healthy, Kangas can be one of the top players in the league.

ROSTER REPORT

--F Derick Nelson was superb for Oakland during his first full season in the starting lineup. He was named to both the All-Summit League and All-Summit Tournament teams. Nelson, a rising senior, led the Golden Grizzlies and was fifth in the conference at 17.3 points per game. He also led the Summit in offensive rebounds and averaged a double-double during the Summit League tournament.

--Despite receiving quite a scare early in the season, G Erik Kangas bounced back to continue his strong career as one of Oakland's best marksmen ever. Kangas suffered a broken collarbone during the Golden Grizzlies' first game of the year, but fortunately it was not too severe and he only had to miss five contests. The junior already has the school's single-season record for 3-pointers, and is now just 88 off the career Oakland record.

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