Collin Chandler was named to the Naismith Starting 5 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Top 20 Preseason Watch List on Tuesday morning, according to a October 27 report. The BYU junior is one of six schools to have a player on the men’s and women’s preseason watchlist, joined by junior Delaney Gibb.
Chandler is one of four players from the Big 12 represented on the preseason watchlist. He is joined by West Virginia’s Finley Bizjack, Arizona’s Caleb Holt, and Iowa State’s Killyan Toure.
A 6-foot-6 transfer from Kentucky, Chandler averaged 21.0 points per game in BYU’s exhibition victories over Nebraska and UNLV. During those games, he shot 50.0 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from 3-point range, and 82.4 percent from the free throw line.
In the Cougars' 89-77 victory over UNLV on Saturday, Chandler scored a team-high 23 points. He achieved this while shooting 5-of-9 from the field, 4-of-8 from behind the arc, and 9-of-12 from the free throw line, while also recording five assists to help BYU overcome a 12-point first-half deficit.
During his two seasons in Lexington, Chandler appeared in 61 games and made 31 starts for the Wildcats. He averaged 6.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 41.9 percent from the field, 39.6 percent from three, and 84.0 percent from the charity stripe. As a sophomore in the 2025-26 season, he averaged a career-best 9.7 points per game and knocked down a team-high 73 3-pointers.
The annual Jerry West Award celebrates its 13th year by highlighting top Division I men's college basketball shooting guards. In late January, the 20-player watchlist will be narrowed to 10, and then to five finalists in late February. The winner will be selected in March by a committee of media members, head coaches, sports information directors, and Hall of Famers.
