JUCO forward Ed Chang commits to Mizzou

On Thursday afternoon, junior college forward Ed Chang committed to Missouri, a move that shores up the Tigers’ front-court rotation with a floor-spacing combo forward.

Chang, who is 6-foot-8, spent last season at Salt Lake Community College, where he averaged 8.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and shot 39.7 percent behind the 3-point arc. The move was a reset after Chang departed San Diego State, where he saw scant minutes as a freshman.

The Nebraska native is no stranger to Mizzou’s staff, either. The Tigers extended Chang an offer in May 2018. A month later, though, Chang, who was No. 285 in the Class of 2018, pledged his services to San Diego State, where he joined former grassroots teammate Aguek Arop on the Aztecs roster.

By now, Chang is well-traveled, too.

At Papillon-La Vista High School, he averaged 18.1 points as a junior and was twice named an All-Nebraska selection. Originally committed to Washington, he moved to Seattle to play for Huskies alum Brandon Roy at Garfield High. That plan was derailed by the Washington Interscholastic Athletic Association, which forced Chang to sit out his senior campaign.

Early on, coach Brian Dutcher reportedly considered slapping a redshirt on Chang, who was adamant he didn’t want to watch another season pass from the bench. Buried in the Aztecs rotation, Chang only saw action in 12 games and never logged more than seven minutes on his way to averaging 1.6 points and 0.7 rebounds.

The sparse minutes and struggles on the defensive end of the floor led Chang to put his name in the transfer portal.

Once he landed at SLCC, Chang’s shooting stroke, a strength since high school, was the primary tool in his offensive package. However, he only started six games and averaged just 17 minutes in his lone season with the Bruins. The question is how expansive Chang’s role will be moving forward. On first glance, you could envision him supplying some spot-up shooting off the bench.

With Chang’s commitment, he joins center Jordan Wilmore as a member of the Tigers’ 2020 recruiting class. He has two years of eligibility remaining.

Meanwhile, Martin and his staff are still trying to fill one more opening the roster. The Tigers have focused that search on transfer guards, including Drew Buggs and Jarred Hyder, both of whom have the Tigers among their finalists. MU has also reportedly touched base with JUCO guard El Ellis and Monmouth transfer Ray Salnave.