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.
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.
"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."
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.
"These first few years (in college) have given me a lot of experience. The things that you've done so far and the games that you've been in, they earn you credibility in your teammates' eyes," Chandler said. "I think I've been put in a great position where I've had a bunch of experience in huge games and things like that. The emotions, the roller coasters going through a season, I think they're going to help me as a leader."
While Chandler and his wife, Hannah, truly enjoyed their time at Kentucky, they felt something pulling them back to Utah, where they could be closer to family and other loved ones.
The stars aligned for a reunion with BYU, as Chandler landed with the Cougars just three days after entering the transfer portal last April to become Kevin Young's first offseason addition.
Kentucky used Chandler almost exclusively as a 3-point specialist — of his 260 shot attempts as a sophomore, 178 were triples. He was happy to do "what was needed for our team at that time," and he did it well, hitting 41% of his 3-pointers last year and averaging two makes per game.
At BYU, however, Young envisions a greater, more diverse offensive workload for Chandler, such as increased play-making duties and opportunities to score at every level.
Judging by the two exhibitions, so far, so good. Look for Chandler to contend for the Cougars' team scoring title and put up some solid assist numbers as well.
"BYU is a place that needs more of a skillset in being on the ball, getting downhill and that kind of thing, which is something that fits my game," Chandler said. "That also played into the decision of being here, because that's what I want to do. That's what my game is, and I'm excited to showcase it."
As excited as he is to play for Young, Chandler still has plenty of gratitude for Pope, especially for helping him navigate the transition to college basketball from a mission.
"I put a lot of faith in God, but also in coach Pope to believe he would take care of me," Chandler said. "Coming home from a mission is hard. It's hard on your body, and I'm super appreciative of the way that he approached it to be very patient with me and get me to where my body is safe to play and healthy. That made it a great decision for me to go (to Kentucky) and to be with somebody who understood where I was coming from.
"And coming to BYU now, I felt like it would be good for my game to experience more from coach Young and what he can help me with in his system," he continued. "For my wife and I, being home and with our families again made it a good decision. We're happy about it."
Sharing a backcourt with Chandler will be incumbent Cougars point guard Rob Wright III , a legitimate Big 12 Player of the Year and All-America candidate. Should Chandler's exhibition performances translate into the regular season, BYU could boast one of the best guard tandems in the conference.
"He makes my life so easy," Chandler said of Wright. "He creates so many shots for me. He gets downhill whenever he wants and requires so much help defense that when he sprays it, I get a ton of open shots.
"He can also shoot the ball as well, so when I get downhill, it's the same thing. He just makes my life easy in that way. That's what having a great point guard does, he controls the offense, he controls the game and does it super well."
Chandler's other new teammates include his longtime friends and fellow Utah natives Jaxon Kohler and Jake Wahlin , who he's competed with and against for years.
The chance to play in a faith-promoting environment was especially appealing to Chandler. He's one of eight Latter-day Saint players and five returned missionaries on BYU's roster, which also includes devout Christians in Bruce Branch III , Rob Wright III, Tyler Betsey and others as well.
Simply put, it's a team full of testimonies.
BYU's coaches put a heavy offseason emphasis on building chemistry and camaraderie within the locker room, and Chandler views faith as a prime asset in doing so.
After all, faith helped bring Chandler to BYU in the first place.
"I think establishing kind of that culture, the gospel's culture, into a program makes a program better, it makes a program successful," Chandler said. "I think having so many guys that have that identity and know what that culture kind of looks like has helped everybody to become better and establish a great unit."
BYU's Collin Chandler (5) gives his teammate a thumbs up for an assist during a game against Nebraska at the Marriott Center in Provo Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. | Lukas Katilius, Deseret News
