The rain poured down, beating the windows of the Floy Lewis Bakes Center this past Sunday. It was a scene reflective of the feelings inside the building, where Ursinus fans faced the biggest betrayal in Ursinus sports history.
A year ago, Ursinus basketball shocked the world, as five-star recruit Doron Taussig committed to the school over D1 powerhouses like Duke and Michigan. Now, the school faces a brutal reality: Taussig has decided to enter the transfer portal after just one season.
Taussig originally committed to the school after being discovered at the local Germantown Life Enrichment Center by college scouts. He broke barriers by becoming one of the first older prospects to return to school in order to play basketball, with professional athletes like Baylor’s James Nnaji and Santa Clara’s Thierry Daylan soon to follow.
“It really was an easy decision [to come here],” stated Taussig at the time. “To join a school that’s so financially stable, and a program that’s always winning the conference, was an incredible opportunity.”
Throughout the school’s basketball season, Taussig’s legend grew in Collegeville. He averaged 40 points per game (leading all of division 3), 20 rebounds per game, and, oddly enough, zero assists per game.
“We ran a very complex offense, that was suitable towards Doron’s strengths,” Coach Kevin Small emphasized. “It was called, ‘Give the ball to Doron and stand in the corner,’ or ‘GTBTDASITC’ for short.”
The Bears flourished throughout most of Centennial Conference play, due to Taussig’s unstoppable nature. But they ran into a challenge when perennial contender Johns Hopkins found a solution to the star’s dominance.
“They started using a very intricate scheme, where they only guarded Doron,” the coach said. “It was hard for us to find answers.”
The loss was surely disappointing for all parties involved. Taussig’s departure, however, has been fueled by the opportunity to possibly pursue NIL opportunities elsewhere, according to sources. Top schools like Arizona and Connecticut have been willing to throw million-dollar NIL packages at the star, something Ursinus simply isn’t capable of.
Against the odds, though, the community has looked to do their best to keep Taussig in town. The Collegeville Italian Bakery has created a new pizza entitled “The Doron,” with hopes of swaying the player to stay.
The pizza is a buffalo chicken pizza, with fried mac and cheese, meatballs, onions, birthday cake, and mayonnaise on top. It’s been lauded as the least complex menu item the bakery has come up with this year.
“It’s really exciting to see them going back to their roots,” said Collegeville local Renee Washart.
As for Taussig’s actual play, questions have arisen over whether or not his abilities will translate. ESPN Analyst Jay Bilas, however, has no doubts.
“He’s kind of a mix between Kevin Durant, and prime Dirk Nowitzki,” the analyst said. “I have no doubt he’ll succeed at the next level.”
Taussig’s status will be one to monitor over the next couple of weeks, as the college basketball transfer portal continues to shake out. For now, the star will look to soak in his last few weeks as an Ursinus Bear. When asked what he’d spend his free time doing, he pointed to an interest in Ursinus’s own Grizzly, and their sports section.
“I think I’ll probably spend most of my time reading the sports section of The Grizzly,” Taussig said. “They put some really fascinating articles in there, and they’re all incredibly well-edited.”
Without a doubt, as his time as a Bear comes to a close, Doron’s priorities are in the right place.
Copyright © 2026 | The Grizzly