As a follower of Tennessee for the entire year, I've been impressed with Chism's skillset. He has decent size and length, good athleticism, and he's shown signs that his jumpshot could become a decent weapon further down the road. Admittedly, though, I question his mindset - I'm not sure about his basketball IQ, and the Tennessee team as a whole has been criticized for having no heart with the exception of Tyler Smith. That's kind of a red flag for me. With all of that said, you could do a heck of a lot worse with the 58th pick than to take a reach on a guy like this.
Agreed, although I wouldn't include Chism in the questioning of heart. He is a very emotional player and seems to give it his all every play.
Well, the questioning of heart came straight from Bruce Pearl himself, and Tyler Smith was the only one that he made an effort to single out as an exception. I don't really think you can ignore that label from his own coach.
Well, I'm not sure when Pearl said that but how about this, at the end of the season.
Tennessee associate athletic trainer Chad Newman announced Tuesday that basketball player Wayne Chism has a fractured left thumb and has been fitted with a hard cast. The junior sustained the injury during live practice work last Wednesday at Wright State University and played in the Vols' NCAA Tournament game against Oklahoma State two days later.
"Wayne was in a great deal of pain during the Oklahoma State game," UT head coach Bruce Pearl said. "Our team medical staff didn't think he would risk further injury by playing in the game Friday, but his thumb was taped and he was clearly limited in what he could do with that hand.
"Wayne never made a big deal about the injury-before, during or after the game. He demonstrated tremendous toughness."
Chism played 28 minutes against the Cowboys, totaling 11 points and six rebounds.
Newman said Chism will wear the cast on his left (non-shooting)hand for approximately 2-4 weeks and that a full recovery is expected.
That takes heart. Period.
