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KANSAS CITY — Leaps of faith have been a staple of Collin Chandler’s basketball career.
He signed with BYU out of high school despite holding offers from other more prestigious programs.
He delayed the start of his college career to serve a two-year church mission.
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When he chose to follow Mark Pope to Kentucky, he did so as a missionary on another continent, having never visited Lexington before.
Chandler’s latest leap? Returning back to his home state to join the same Cougars squad he originally committed to in November 2021.
When Chandler takes the court for BYU’s regular-season opener against Ohio State on Monday night, it will come 1,818 days after announcing his pledge to be the program’s then-highest rated signee of the 247 Sports era.
Much has changed for Chandler in the past half-decade, but the support he’s received from Cougar Nation has been a much-appreciated constant — even when he wore a slightly different shade of blue across the country as a Wildcat.
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“The fans were great when I committed in high school, and even when I left, I still felt loved and welcomed, especially from people like (BYU athletic director) Brian Santiago,” Chandler told the Deseret News at Big 12 basketball media days in Kansas City.
“It’s something that I think is cool with the program, there’s no burned bridges. So I’m excited to be back, and the fans have been awesome, obviously they love their sports. Playing in the Marriott Center for the first time was awesome, to have that full-circle moment was super cool.”
Early returns
Chandler’s early action in Provo has been encouraging, as he’s averaged 21 points in exhibition matchups against Nebraska and UNLV, while shooting 40% from behind the arc.
But more valuable than any statistical production this season will be his newfound leadership role for the Cougars, something Chandler has embraced from the jump and refuses to take lightly.
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“These first few years (in college) have given me a lot of experience….
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/once-viewed-byu-future-5-174500330.html
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Publish date : 2026-10-29 17:45:00
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