Nearly 4.5 years after committing to BYU as a high school senior, Collin Chandler is finally coming to Provo. The Kentucky transfer announced his commitment to BYU through Joe Tipton.
Collin has spent the last two years at Kentucky
and saw a nice jump from his freshman to sophomore year. Collin was, of course, committed to BYU for over two years including during his mission. He followed Mark Pope to Kentucky once he returned home two years ago.
After averaging 2.7 points as a freshman, Collin saw a big jump as a sophomore. Collin started in 31 of 36 games for Kentucky and averaged 9.7 points while shooting 73-178 (41%) from three. BYU’s vision for Collin will be what the staff did for Richie Saunders. Saunders averaged 9.6 points and shot 36% from three as a sophomore for BYU. After Kevin Young came to BYU, Richie was named Big 12 Most Improved player as a junior and averaged 16.5 points.
Collin will come in right away and start as the two guard next to 5-Star wing Bruce Branch to form a great shooting duo. Collin was one of the best shooters in the SEC this past season, shooting 46% from three in SEC play (#2 in SEC play). Being a spot-up shooter was one of his main roles at Kentucky, but he has the skills and athleticism to expand his game at BYU. Collin is a bouncy athlete who can finish above the rim, and BYU will put him in positions where they can take advantage of his ability to rise up. One scout told me this season that Kevin Young’s offense is a “perfect” fit for Collin Chandler and will highlight his shooting and athletic abilities.
Collin is listed at 6-foot-5, 205 pounds. He can get caught out of position at times on defense and by out-physicaled by bigger guards at times, so those are two areas he can work on and BYU will need to build around as they complete the roster. He will need to improve on creating separation off the dribble and his overall defense, but Collin has the skills and makeup to make the jump to an All-Big 12 caliber player.
Collin also wasn’t afraid to take clutch shots this season, and made multiple huge baskets for the Wildcats. Below are a couple of the late-game baskets he made.
You can watch highlights below.
