I don't love the fact that IU would be his 5th school in 5 years. But I guess there isn't really a worry about him leaving at the end of the year? As long as he's dialed in and motivated to being good for this season, at IU, he could help our bench depth.
Hatton , will be in signed tues or wed, don't see the need for this guy
Maybe Hatton is our only realistic option but Hatton to me he's a poor mans Payton Sparks.
My perception is that Hatton isn't really at all similar to Sparks as a player? Are you just referring to their talent level?
Yeah, they're not similar in output. As a sophomore at Ball State, Sparks averaged 13 pts, 9 rebs and 52% FG%. As a junior Hatton avg 10pts, 7rebs and shot 48% FG%. They're both 6'10. Sparks is 258 and Hatton is 240. One just does less than the other.
We saw that Sparks didn't fit well in our system though. We needed post depth, he barely played. And when he did, he didn't show a ton of promise.
you're not going to get what you're looking for. with Ballo and Malik no all big 10 level player is going to come here. Hatton is about as opposite of Sparks as a player could be. his game will be more perimeter stretch 4 , Sparks is a 2 foot from the basket undersized center who can't shoot.
I'm not very familiar with Hatton.
Bawa or Tijan could be poor man’s Sparks vbg
a poor man's Payton sparks would just pass on shooting free throws when fouled. he would say just give the other team the ball this is wasting time.
He played more inside at Bellarmine than I think I even had the perception he did. But the fact that he's capable of hitting an open 3, and can navigate his way to the basket with the ball from the perimeter, makes him a completely different type of player to Sparks. And if that's what IU needs out of him while he's in the game for 10-15 minutes, he'll be a lot more effective at IU than Sparks was...despite probably not being as good an interior player as Sparks is.
Sparks is one dimensional, Bellarmine runs a motion offense lots of movement he will fit in just fine
either Hatton or Issa are huge athletic upgrades over Payton Sparks. Just looking at the footwork, movement and hands shows that. Sparks was completely a back to the basket player. Hatton is really closer to a poor man's Ware or Reneau type. He can step out and hit threes and he can slash to the basket. You might want to watch some 2023 highlights before making that comparison again,
When I look at the highlight video of Hatten, the first name that comes to mind, is Luka Garza, of Iowa past. Obviously, not as productive as Garza, but exhibited a lot of the same skills as Garza. Of course, the difference would be, Garza exhibited those skills, more often, and with more power. So I would rate him, maybe, a poor mans Luka Garza. And, in my opinion, an excellent addition to the team, as a backup to the bigs. And, you know Woody can get more out of him, just like he has with our past bigs, TJD, and KeW.
Really? I don't remember Garza like that... I could be misremembering though. Hatten appears quicker, more like a forward type than I remember Garza.
If we can't find a young 4/5 backup that can stick around with a chance to improve eac year, Hatton sounds like our best option.
I pulled up a highlight video of Garza, after seeing Hatton's video, and thinking of Garza, and that confirmed my opinion of the comparison. Similar size, Garza 6'10" 235lbs, Hatton 6'10" 240lbs. similar moves, both hit 3's, and pull-ups. Both can put the ball on the floor and create their own shot. Very similar.
No way Garza weighed less. He was so thick. Like monster fake looking thick. Reminded me of the Munsters character.
Similar physical players but the difference with GArza is between the ears.
Garza lost a lot of weight as a senior to make himself quicker for NBA. Just after the Draft I was going up the stairs in the bleachers at a Cubs game and I literally ran into him as he was coming down. I looked up and then I kept looking up. Very tall, but I was surprised he was much thinner than I expected.
we are looking for someone to play 5 minutes a game unless we have an injury or foul trouble and he's getting compared to Garza a national player of the year. this fan base at times can be nuts, in the fans eyes all players are all American's. until they actually play, once they hit the court, we can't wait to get rid of them so they can be replaced with the next all American. Hatton can have a Joey Brunk type impact at his highest ceiling. which is ok because unlike Brunk he won't be playing many minutes.
Joey B would be perfect for this team. Good comp.
He came up big in that Uconn game in NYC. I kind knew then Hurley was going to be tough with that early roster construction.
