Kentucky basketball taking the long view with Collin Chandler. ‘He’s going to be a star.’
Everyone involved knew from the beginning that this would be a process.
For Collin Chandler — and those who so clearly see what he can become on the basketball court — knowing that ahead of time doesn’t make things any easier now.
“Well, one, it’s just hard. There’s no way around it, right?” Kentucky coach Mark Pope said of Chandler’s current situation. “But if you let it, these experiences turn you into something that you’re not already. It’s just the truth of the game.”
Chandler — a 6-foot-5 freshman guard from Farmington, Utah — was the very first player to commit to the Cats after Pope was named UK’s coach back in April, flipping from BYU, where he was set to be one of the most highly touted incoming players in that program’s history.
The addition was welcome news as Pope jumped into the process of putting together his first roster. Even after that process was complete — with 12 new scholarship players joining the program — Chandler was still the Wildcat with the highest national ranking as a recruit.
But that didn’t mean he was coming in with the loftiest of instant-impact expectations.
As has been well-documented since his commitment, Chandler took two years off of basketball to go on a Mormon mission, and Pope, from the beginning, talked about the cautious approach he would take with Chandler as soon as the freshman arrived on campus.
Now nine games into the season, he’s still trying to carve out his role on this Kentucky team, but that was to be expected coming in — even if Chandler has to regularly remind himself of the fact.
“I think probably the biggest thing is patience as a player. A big thing that I’ve had to learn — and that has continued to be tested — is everything is new,” he said. “I’m a freshman, plus not playing for two years, everything is new. And it’s a big learning curve.”
Pope had ample experience helping players get back into basketball shape following mission trips from his nine seasons as head coach at Utah Valley and BYU, but he already knew that Chandler’s would be a unique case. He’d never had a player that talented go through this process. And everyone who’d been around Chandler as a high school prospect — Pope included — raved about his competitiveness and work ethic, both positive attributes, but ones that might make it difficult to pace himself when the ramp-up began.
In an April interview with the Herald-Leader, the UK coach joked that he might have to restrict Chandler’s access to the practice gym in the early going. “Maybe put a tracking device on him to make sure he’s not in there too much,” Pope said.
Chandler, as expected, did as much as he was allowed to do as soon as he got to Lexington, impressing teammates right off the bat with how quickly he reacclimated himself to the game.
“It surprised me how good he was when he first came back,” said senior forward Ansley Almonor. “I’m like, ‘Damn.’ It’s like he didn’t miss a beat. I’m like, ‘Two years away from basketball?’ He was dunking right away. It was crazy, you know. …
“It just shows you what type of future he has. He definitely has a bright future in the game, and he’ll be playing for a long time.”
Even Chandler was surprised, saying that everything seemed to be coming back more quickly than he anticipated. There was a slight hangup late in the offseason — a hamstring injury sidelining him for a bit and delaying that ramp-up process — but Chandler continued to draw praise from his teammates and deliver some eye-opening moments on the court.
In the team’s Blue-White scrimmage in October, he was one of the standouts, scoring 19 points while shooting 4-for-7 from 3-point range, a poster dunk over 6-10 forward Brandon Garrison thrown in for good measure.
The season hadn’t even started yet, and Chandler looked like he was good to go. But he knew there was much more work to be done.
“I’m not as fast as I think I can be,” he said a few days later. “Can’t jump as high as I think I can jump.”
It was an acknowledgment that it wouldn’t be easy as just practicing for a few months and jumping right into the fray at the highest level of college basketball.
Collin Chandler so far
Beyond the tall task of building up his conditioning, there was the challenge of regaining his feel and timing. And as UK fans know well, even the most talented of recruits — Chandler was ranked No. 33 in the 2022 class — can often struggle adjusting to the increased speed and physicality of the college game, even under the best of circumstances.
“Another thing that’s new and comes with adjustment is learning how to come in and continue with the pace that the players have been playing at,” Chandler said. “And it’s something that I’m learning and comes with a lot of learning curves. And so I’m just trying to be patient with myself and learn as fast as I can, get better every time I do it, to get better at my role — try to find my role and be the best that I can at it.”
When the season started, it was clear that Chandler was at the bottom of Pope’s 10-man rotation, to be expected on a roster filled with veteran players, including seven seniors — six of them in their fifth season of college ball.
In UK’s blowout victories, he’s gotten plenty of run — 13.8 minutes per game in wins over Wright State, Bucknell, Lipscomb and Jackson State — but Chandler has barely played in the closer games, a clear sign that Pope thinks he’s not quite ready for those situations.
He didn’t play in the second half in UK’s 77-72 win over Duke, played sparingly in closer-than-expected games against Western Kentucky and Georgia State, and he didn’t play at all in the loss at Clemson last week.
Four days later in Seattle — with starting point guard Lamont Butler sidelined and the Cats short-handed — Chandler played two short stints for a total of four minutes and 33 seconds in UK’s 90-89 overtime win against Gonzaga. He had a turnover, a missed 3-pointer and looked out of place at times on defense during that stretch. Chandler didn’t play at all after halftime, even with Kerr Kriisa’s second-half injury leaving the Cats with even fewer players.
Through nine games, Chandler is 10th on the team in minutes, points and shot attempts.
The highlight of his season so far was the 108-59 victory over Jackson State, tallying six points and going 2-for-3 from 3-point range. He played only 13 minutes, but the Cats outscored their opponent by 29 points when he was on the court. Sixteen seconds after first stepping foot on the Rupp floor, he fired up a long 3-pointer.
“Collin is not scared, he checked in the game and shot a 30-footer in transition and said, ‘Yeah, I’ve got this,’” Pope recalled afterward with delight. “He’s an incredible talent. There’s nobody in this room that can relate to going and putting down the basketball for two years.”
Chandler said that night that he thought it was “a step forward” in adjusting to the speed of the college game and the rhythm of shooting within the flow of Pope’s offense. While he was talking, Pope walked over and gently ribbed him over getting beat to a ball during the game. Chandler had a quick comeback that got a chuckle out of the head coach, before Pope walked away, a smile on his face.
“It’s awesome,” Chandler beamed when asked what his college experience had been like so far. “Ever since I was 15 years old, I know I’ve wanted to play for Coach Pope. And so I’m glad that I get to do it now. It’s fun every day, and he pushes us to be better. … I didn’t know what to expect, but I knew that I was going to be learning from Coach Pope, and that’s exactly what’s happened. I’m learning every day, trying to pick his brain and learn from him every day. And it’s definitely expanded my basketball knowledge.”
Sticking with the plan
When Chandler does get some time on the court — and UK’s game against Colgate on Wednesday night could bring some more opportunities, especially with Kriisa expected to be sidelined for several weeks — he tries not to hold back, noting the confidence that he feels from his head coach.
“It’s no fun to play on eggshells,” Chandler said. “So I’ve been playing freely, and when there needs to be an adjustment or a teaching moment, he’ll happily teach me what I need to do. And so I’m grateful to be able to play freely as well as learn a lot from these guys.”
As much as he’d like to be out there playing major minutes in these big December games, he’s always known this part of the season would be a learning experience. When’s the last time he didn’t start for his team? Chandler grinned. Maybe junior high school, he said. But watching from the sidelines can help you get better, too.
“Yeah, for sure. As a bench, we’re talking right out of the gates,” Chandler said, pointing out that the reserve players are constantly communicating about what the opposing team is doing and how that knowledge might help when and if they get into the game.
Behind the scenes, Chandler has worked closely with his two fellow freshmen, Kentucky natives Travis Perry and Trent Noah, the 11th and 12th men on this loaded UK roster. Chandler was known as a good 3-point shooter in high school, but he’ll freely admit to discovering that Perry and Noah were on another level from long range when he arrived.
That’s only pushed him harder.
Chandler explained that the three freshmen are grouped together in shooting drills every day. They also have a little side game where they’ll pick a spot on the court — each player taking a shot from that same spot on a rotating basis, and the first player to make seven shots wins.
“And it’s very rare that the person that won the spot didn’t make seven out of seven,” Chandler said. As a result, he’s raised his own previous expectations as a shooter, drastically changing his outlook on what a successful day in the gym looks like. “I’ve gotten a lot better,” he said.
Everyone will see this eventually. It’ll just take a little more patience from all involved.
“He’s a great, great player. He’s gonna be really good here, trust me,” Almonor said. “He’s just really talented. Like, he’s really talented. He’s athletic. He can shoot the ball. He can handle the ball. He’s great defensively. He’s a smart player. He’s really good.”
Jaxson Robinson — the only UK player to ever play for Pope before this season — was around plenty of mission trip returnees during his two seasons at BYU and has been impressed with Chandler’s progress. But he knows what this process takes, and — whenever anyone brings up his young teammate — Robinson offers a reminder of how difficult that process can be.
Former teammate Dallin Hall started 21 games as a freshman — his first season after a two-year mission trip — but Robinson said the BYU point guard told him it took a full year to really feel like himself on the court again. Chandler has been back in the gym for about six months.
“I think Colin has been doing a great job of progressing,” Robinson said. “I mean, he’s going to be a star.”
On that, everyone seems to agree. Chandler simply needs to stay the course to get there. And he’ll continue to learn as he goes. That opportunity to learn is one of the biggest reasons he came to Lexington in the first place.
“In the recruiting process, it just felt like there was something — I always felt like there was something different with Coach Pope and his staff,” he said. “Like when we would watch film together, and they would teach me something, or they would talk to me after a game. And I just always felt like there was so much to learn from him and that he had great intentions for me. I felt like he believed in me. That was, I think, the biggest thing was that he believed in me. And that’s who I want to play for is someone who believes in me and sees a future for me.”
Chandler might not be playing much at the moment, but Pope’s outlook hasn’t changed.
The Kentucky coach said that everyone on this team — even the college basketball veterans — are “forging their way” to find new levels in their games this season, trying to improve and unlock attributes that maybe weren’t evident before.
“And what’s interesting — I talk to our guys about this all the time — is I have a very clear vision where each of these guys is going to end up. I think it’s one of the things that I’m really blessed to have insight to,” Pope said. “I just have a pretty good feel for, like, what guys can become. It’s easy for me to see. What’s less predictable is the pathway that you take to get there, right?
“But I don’t know that you’re going to meet a better human being than Colin Chandler, and I suspect that Colin Chandler is going to make massive contributions to this team this season. And so it’s about getting better every day and being ready when the big opportunities present themselves. And he will be.”
Wednesday
Colgate at No. 4 Kentucky
When: 8 p.m.
TV: ESPN2
Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1
Records: Colgate 2-7, Kentucky 8-1
Series: First meeting
