We are profiling each member of the 2013-14 Creighton Bluejays men’s basketball team. Check in daily leading up to Creighton’s regular season opener against Alcorn State Nov. 8 for an introduction to this season’s Bluejays, from newcomers to seniors. Check out all the previews here.
Austin Chatman (#1 / G / 6-0 / 180 lbs. / Jr.)
Last fall, Austin Chatman was the subject of No. 10 on my list of pressing questions surround the 2012-2013 version of the Creighton Bluejays. I wondered aloud how Chatman would take the giant step from freshman averaging 11.8 minutes per game to sophomore running the point for a nationally ranked conference champion.
Turns out, Chatman handled the transition just as well as he does most times down the court. Named to the Missouri Valley Conference’s Most Improved Team, Chatman was third in the league in assists per game and assist/turnover ratio while playing the ninth-most minutes per game among Valley players.
Chatman improved his shooting percentage, three-point percentage, free throw percentage, and rebounding. His 30 steals were three off the team lead (Grant Gibbs’ 33). He protected the basketball and rarely forced the issue, a perfect combination for a team featuring plenty of other offensive firepower.
Considering his improvements from year one to year two as a Bluejay, just what could Chatman’s junior year look like? It’s hard to imagine him logging substantially more minutes per game; it would have been more likely had Gibbs not received another year of eligibility. In fact, with the addition of Devin Brooks to the backcourt situation, Chatman could realistically see a dip in his per-game playing time, on average. I mean, if the Big East is going to be as physical and challenging as everyone would have you believe, Greg McDermott and his staff likely will need to rely on improved depth among the guards to survive night in and night out.
Consider me intrigued as to what Chatman’s third act might entail. His marked improvement from his freshman to sophomore season was pushed far off the radar when compared to another amazing, All-American season by Doug McDermott and the senior-year emergence of Gregory Echenique as a legit high-level professional prospect — in addition, of course, to a MVC regular season and tournament title and return trip to the NCAA tournament. If Chatman can continue his upward trajectory as he starts his third season at CU, the 2013-2014 Bluejays can certainly become an elite team.
We caught up with Chatman at Creighton’s Media Day:
