Tyler Tejada is spending his first offseason at Cincinnati with a clear priority: getting his body ready for the Big 12 grind.
The 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward spoke with reporters Friday in his first major public comments since joining the Bearcats, and he made it plain where his focus has been. Tejada said the offseason work is centered on strength, conditioning and sharpening the rest of his game around it.
"Just Coach Calhoun and coaching staff is what stood out to me the most," Tejada said in the scrum about choosing Cincinnati. "That's why I wanted to come here, why I wanted to be a part of this team and part of this culture.
Just in terms of offseason, just working on my all-around game, the biggest thing is definitely the weight room, getting my body stronger. My body-fat percentage is down, and just continue working on defense and being a better offensive fit."
Tejada arrives as a projected starter and brings a strong résumé with him. The fourth-year player has one season of eligibility left after this upcoming year, and he just turned in his best college campaign, averaging a career-high 17.7 points per game along with 5.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
Last season at Towson, he was one of the most efficient offensive players in the CAA and finished with a 48% effective field goal rate while working through a varied shot diet. He also has a walk-out song that fits his initials: "TNT" by AC/DC.
"Yeah, I picked that one as my walkout song if I played baseball because TNT are my initials," Tejada noted.
There was more good news for Cincinnati on Friday, too. Tejada learned that MJ Collins will also be on the roster for the upcoming season. Collins led Utah State in scoring last year and brings an efficient offensive profile of his own.
"Definitely exciting," Tejada said. "Caliber player he is, and what he brings to the table will definitely be something big for us if he can get here.
Tejada also reflected on what he took from returning to Towson last spring after his breakout season. He said the biggest lesson was handling the mental side of the spotlight that came with it.
"I learned a lot. Mostly just like the mental aspect of the game, like how to handle things," Tejada said about coming back to Towson after that big season.
"After that, it was a lot of attention. A lot of people like trying to come at me and stuff.
So I guess just learning how to handle myself more on the mental side than the physical side of it."
Now he heads into a new chapter at Cincinnati with the same mix of production, confidence and work ethic that made him such an intriguing addition in the first place.
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Now Eason is set to stay put after a brief free agency stretch, a sign that Houston views him as more than just a useful piece. For Cincinnati fans, it is another reminder of how quickly a player can move from a one-year stop on campus to a meaningful NBA payday, with Easons rise continuing to validate the talent that once passed through the program. [Read more 🡒]