Chase Hallam has started all 62 games during his career as a guard for the Pioneers; his 63rd start will be one like he has never experienced.
Hallam, a junior out of Mesquite, Texas, was voted to the Sun Belt Conference’s Preseason First Team by College-SportsMadness.com on Oct. 2. This honor, however, has not instilled a sense of superiority in Hallam. Rather, he has remained humble, stating that the early award will be significant to the way he will conduct himself throughout the season.
“It’s definitely a nice honor, but in reality it doesn’t really mean anything until the end of the season. I still have a lot to prove,” Hallam said. “I know I still have to come out and work as hard as I can everyday at practice. If I don’t do that and coast, the award means absolutely nothing.”
Hallam is coming off a season in which head coach Joe Scott relied on him heavily to help determine the outcome of games. Hallam ranked 5th in three-point percentage (.425), 6th in steals (1.6 per game) and 15th in free throw percentage (.741) in the SBC during the 2010-2011 season.
Additionally, he ranked 4th in the Sun Belt Conference in minutes played per game (34.4). The player that finished 1st in the conference was his older brother, Travis.
“Travis and I have played together for as long as I can remember,” Hallam said. “We were on the same AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) team and the same high school team. It’s a bit weird to look at it from an outside perspective to see two brothers playing on the same college team, but, for us, it’s easy.”
Travis’ commitment to play basketball at DU in the fall of 2008 may have been the biggest contributing factor in convincing Chase to become a Pioneer.
“During the summer after Travis’ freshman year, I came out for a visit. I was already being recruited by DU, so I decided to take a visit,” said Hallam. “I really liked what Travis told me about the team, and I could see why when I came out here. I really liked the guys and the facilities, so it made it an easy decision to come here.”
In just two seasons, Chase has already started 33 more games than Travis and averages seven more points per game than his brother. Despite a sub-.500 season just a year ago, Chase is confident about the upcoming season.
“Honestly, I believe that we are capable of doing anything, but it all depends upon our play,” said Hallam about he and his brother. “We have the talent and ability, but we have to come out and perform night in and night out. Having said that, my expectations are that we will finish first.”
The recipe for Hallam to have a successful season and live up to his preseason award is simple, according to Scott.
“Chase needs to be Chase. He needs to be in his natural aggressive role. Rather than try to play a certain role, he needs to just play the way we know he can,” Scott said. “This will allow him to become the natural leader we are looking for. When he plays naturally, he is one of the best players in our conference.
“He can shoot the ball well. He plays tough defense and gets a lot of steals. He rebounds well both on the offensive and defensive glass. Playing naturally will free him up to do more things and step into that dependable, leadership type role.”
