Will Wade signs another JUCO player to Chattanooga Mocs

photo Will Wade
Arkansas-Oklahoma State Live Blog

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's basketball coach Will Wade received another player in his 2014 recruiting class on Wednesday when Chuck Ester of East Mississippi Community College began signing scholarship papers to play at UTC starting this fall.

Ester is a 6-foot-7 forward who played this past season alongside UTC fall signee Jacolby Mobley -- a 6-foot guard that led the Lions in scoring last year as a sophomore.

"That's two great gets for coach Will Wade and his staff," EMCC coach Mark White said. "Jacolby will come in and be one of the best players in the league. And Chuck is a great fit for that style of play."

Ester, who sat out his first year in Scooba, Miss., will have three years of eligibility to play three years of basktball.

He averaged 8.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in what White described as an offense built around his guards.

"Chuck is a versatile player who can play the 3 through 5 for Will Wade," White said. "He has all the skills. He can handle the ball, pass it, and he's got a really good mid-range game.

"He's one of those guys who has his best days ahead of him and his potential is a very high ceiling."

White, who has been coaching at EMCC for seven years, said Ester became a hot commodity last summer but wanted to wait until the spring signing period to determine where he would play Division I basketball.

White said Ester's final decision came down to UTC and Stephen F. Austin.

"A lot of schools tried to recruit him hard in the fall and through the season tried to get him to visit," White said. "St. Louis, Ole Miss... Utah State was one, they were trying to get in here during the season. Almost all of the Sun Belt tried.

"But Chatt was his only visit, and after that he didn't want to go to Stephen F. Austin."

Contact David Uchiyama at duchiyama@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6484. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/UchiyamCTFP.

Upcoming Events