How Pat Chambers’ hiring as FGCU Head Coach impacts Penn State Basketball
By Evan Smith
Could former Nittany Lions follow Pat Chambers to FGCU?
It was well documented how many of Pat Chambers’ former players left the Nittany Lion program immediately after his firing.
Some, like Jamari Wheeler and Trent Buttrick don’t have any more eligibility. And after Izaiah Brockington’s breakout performance for the Iowa State Cyclones, it’s likely he wouldn’t be looking to move anywhere (and perhaps the NBA is calling anyway). But what about these former Nittany Lions?
The Fordham Gang:
D.J. Gordon — played in just one game
Patrick Kelly — averaged 12.1 minutes, playing in 21 games (2.9 points, 1.9 rebounds)
Abdou Tsimbila — averaged 2.7 points and 3.5 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per game
All three Fordham players were joined by former Pat Chambers assistant Keith Urgo. Gordon hasn’t developed much at the collegiate level but Kelly, who played high school ball in Florida, may want to head back down south. Who knows, maybe Urgo will do the same.
Tsimbila was the one the Nittany Lions really missed this year. While his stats aren’t amazing, it’s a huge position of need, especially defensively not just this past year, but with virtually no returning front-court players, it would have been especially helpful for Shrewsberry to have some talent to develop for the upcoming years.
Myreon Jones (Florida) — the three-point sharpshooter struggled a bit from deep this year (33.0%) as the Gators had an up and down year. Jones still finished with 8.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.
Given that all four players chose to leave the University, it’s unlikely Shrewsberry would be contacting any of these players to return to the Nittany Lions. The same CANNOT be said for the next group, however.