Kevin Young’s rebuild of BYU’s basketball roster continues to evolve, but one aspect of his philosophy for his future team is evident and simple: He’s tipping his hat to the program’s roots.
While bringing in five-star recruit Bruce Branch III and four-star transfers Tyler Betsey (Syracuse) and Collin Chandler (Kentucky), Young has assembled a Latter-day Saint core to complement the roster.
BYU will tap into half a dozen players who were raised in the faith’s culture via The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Those players (including Chandler) don’t need an orientation speech to the school’s honor code because they’ve digested the popular “Strength of Youth” pamphlet most of their lives.
And they can play.
Some will play more minutes than others. Some will have key roles, others will simply add depth. But they’ve all played AAU ball on a national stage, most of them for the Utah Prospects, co-founded by Tim Davis.
The Utah Propects won the 17-under Adidas Summer Championship with current Cougar Brody Kozlowski in 2023.
In addition to returning senior Dawson Baker, BYU’s team will be constructed with a cultural tweak.
Young will welcome former top-30 Kentucky transfer Chandler, four-star freshman guard/forwards Dean Rueckert and Brooks Bahr and former Utah and Clemson forward Jake Wahlin to campus. He’ll also add 6-foot-11 TCU transfer Adam Stewart.
This group will provide core leadership in and out of the locker room for the Cougars, who just finished a season laced with key injuries, questionable depth and shaky leadership.
The team was filled with young players, some stepping foot on campus and experiencing the BYU culture for the first time in their lives.
I asked Davis to break down the skillset of these six players from his experience dating back more than a decade of watching them play. He graciously agreed to lend his voice, breaking down this crew.
Collin Chandler
Collin Chandler, 6-foot-4, guard/forward, junior Kentucky transfer, former top-30 recruit out of Farmington, Utah, where he was named Deseret News Mr. Utah Basketball.
He signed with BYU over Utah, Arizona and Utah State before going on an church mission. He followed Mark Pope to Kentucky following his mission service.
Davis on Chandler: “I think with Collin, there is something that is going to be unlocked or unleashed. I think a lot of people see him like, ‘Oh, a good shooter and that stuff.’ I’m not saying that’s not what Collin is, but I think people are going to be pleasantly surprised. When I coached him, even in high school, he was so dynamic with the ball in his hands, getting downhill and using the ball to create for others and himself.
“What he has the ability to do is get his hips so low and also be so fast as he drives the ball up in transition as well as halfcourt. He’s just very athletic. I think people will be surprised a little bit how dynamic he’ll be with the ball in his hands off the bounce, more than you saw him as a freshman or sophomore.”
Davis continued: “He’s a great shooter, but what he really is, is so dynamic getting to the hoop and finishing as well as getting to his mid-range spots and making his shot. It’s a very unique part that most kids in Utah do not have as part of their game. He has it.
“I just don’t think people know what’s coming with him really, in my opinion, especially if Kevin lets him sort of just roll a little bit. He looked like a spot-up shooter at Kentucky and that’s not just what his game is. It is part of what he is, but he’s so dynamic with the ball in his hands.”
Brooks Bahr
Brooks Bahr, 6-4 combo guard, Keller, Texas, signed in the class of 2024 under Mark Pope, with finalists including USC, Utah, Wake Forest and Saint Mary’s. He recently returned from missionary service.
Davis on Bahr: “I’ve known Brooks since he was in the fifth grade. He played for an AAU team called Texas Impact since he lived in Texas. How it works with AAU is you can’t play for anybody unless they’re in the state you are in, or a neighboring state.
“He’s really a point guard to me. I would say he plays like Dallin Hall, but is probably a better scoring version of Hall, if that makes sense. He has a very strong body. He’s a great decision maker, but he’s a lefty so he can create some advantages because it’s a bit hard at times to guard lefties if you aren’t familiar with them.
“I’d say if you asked me to describe him, he’s a more scoring mentality version of Dallin Hall, which is a compliment for sure. He’s just tough and really resilient. He has a great basketball body, especially for the Big 12. He’s sort of built for that league in my opinion. He played such a high level of basketball in Texas, and because of that, he’s prepared himself for the Big 12. A freshman is a freshman, but I think he’ll be a lot more ready than people probably anticipate or realize.”
Dean Rueckert
Dean Rueckert, 6-8 forward, Timpview High, class of 2026 will be an incoming freshman, signing with BYU over Washington, Clemson, Stanford and Utah. He is a top-75 recruit out of Provo.
Davis on Rueckert: “I’ve known Dean since he was a seventh grader and he played for us. I’d describe him as a relentless worker, probably almost too much, which is a good thing. He works so hard at basketball and his passion for it is something most top-50 players in the country do not have a great desire to do to get batter. That’s one of his greatest strengths. He’s always asking, ‘How can I get better?’
“I think Dean took a huge jump from his sophomore year to the summer of his junior year. BYU had offered him when he was a sophomore and Kevin got the job. They liked him and wanted him to work on some things. He made a decision to work on those things and Kevin loved that he wanted to change and adapt and grow himself. They saw a huge change in a year. It was like, ‘We are all-in with Dean.’ That’s why he got done earlier than most kids in regards to recruiting because that’s where he wanted to go.
“He’s a big-time shot maker. Everybody sees him as a shooter, but I think he’s really become a very versatile defender who can guard a lot of positions at his size and mobility and he’s also become a lot better rebounder. You look at his stats from his junior year to his senior year and I think its close to double. He’s what I describe as making game-changing plays.
“He made a decision to impact winning without scoring, which is really important when you are a freshman. As you can imagine, it’s really important to be like, ‘Hey, what can you do without the ball in your hands?’ when you are a freshman.
“Dean is really a good athlete like Richie Saunders. Dean has a lot of pop in him. Not all kids have that. He can really get up quickly off the ground. He’s a little bigger than Richie, who might have been a little quicker at the same age. Dean is more of a small forward who can play the guard positions because of his versatility.”
Jake Wahlin
Jake Wahlin, 6-10, senior from Tiimpview High by way of Utah and Clemson, is the brother-in-law of Davis and served a mission to Lithuania after signing with BYU out of high school. He enrolled at Utah when he returned from his mission and transferred to Clemson after a coaching change at Utah.
Davis on Wahlin: “Jake’s journey has been a bit more unique because he was sort of raised to be a football kid. He moved from Texas to Utah in the eighth grade, where all of his buddies were and played basketball. So, he started transitioning into basketball and that’s why his basketball has been a steep trajectory — he’s gotten better quickly as he’s grown. He grew about a foot from eighth grade to when he came off his mission.
“One of his advantages, I think, is he’s just really a 6-11 versatile, whatever-you-want-to-play. I think BYU will play him at the four, just because of how they play offensively. But he really can guard every position, really, one through four. And then, depending on the five, he can guard the five.
“I think his versatility defensively and offensively is really what makes him unique. And that’s the way he impacts winning in a lot of ways. He’s a good shot maker, a catch-and-shoot guy, who is also a straight-line driver. He’s really like a cutter, slasher, mover. That’s how I’d describe him.”
