North Carolina transfer Deja Kelly commits to Oregon

Deja Kelly, the most high-profile transfer left on the board, announced her commitment to the Oregon Ducks on Monday afternoon.

Kelly has one year of eligibility remaining and averaged 16.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists last season at UNC. She’s made consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in each of her four years as a Tar Heel. She was named to the first-team All-ACC for the third year in a row after last season and was named a WBCA All-America region finalist for the third year.

“Kelly is an elite level mid-range scorer whose ability to create her own shot and get to the free throw line will help any offense,” one ACC coach said. “Her defense leaves much to be desired – whoever her next team has around her to help her on defense will really determine how much success she can have.”

Ducks add impact player in Deja Kelly

This is the Ducks’ seventh transfer addition as they look to replace a significant amount of production lost to the portal. They’ve added Siena’s Elisa Mevius, UCSB’s Alexis Whitfield, Texas transfer Amina Muhammad, BYU’s Nani Falatea, Arizona’s Salimatou Kourouma and Washington transfer Ari Long. The Ducks lost five players to the transfer portal, including their two leading scorers.

Due to conference realignment, Oregon is moving from the Pac-12 to the loaded Big Ten conference for the 2024-25 season, joining new additions UCLA, USC and Washington.

Kelly is one of the biggest names in the sport and a prominent name in the NIL space, ranking No. 12 on the On3 NIL Women’s 100. You can’t overlook the impact of NIL in Kelly’s decision. Oregon’s Division Street collective is one of the most robust in the NIL space and a major supporter of women’s sports. Division Street has not been forced to plead with donors to subscribe to a monthly program. Instead, it has its own apparel line, Ducks of a Feather. All merchandise is created by Nike, with profits going back to Oregon athletes.