There’s nothing really new that can be said about Mizzou as a whole after this past week’s games. The Tigers suffered two more losses in more or less the same fashion as the ones that came before it in SEC play. They can be good on offense, or good on defense, but never both at the same time. They’re short on talent and have had a rough time closing games out. I already made the Sisyphus comparison.
So instead, I wanted to shift the focus this week on Tamar Bates, who’s been one of the few real bright spots this year. I remember meeting Bates for the first time this summer and I asked him if the move from Indiana to Missouri was a bigger adjustment on the court or off the court. It’s an easy ice-breaker I asked all the newcomers. And the typical responses you get are, “It’s a little bit of both … I’ve gotta get used to the terminology here … I’ve gotta build chemistry with my teammates … I come from a bigger town, so Columbia’s a little small … I’m from a small town, so Columbia’s a bit big,” etc.
But Bates’ answer stood out a bit.
“At this point in my college career, it's all about what's going on inside the gym,” he said.
If you look at Bates’ highlights while he was at Indiana, you’ll notice that the Hoosiers mostly utilized him off the ball as a spot-up shooter. He thrived in that role coming off the bench, hitting 37.4% of his 3-pointers as a sophomore. But you’ll also see in those highlights that Bates displayed the potential to do more. If a pass came late and/or a defender closed out on him quick, Bates proved capable of pump-faking his man and driving to the rim for a layup or to the elbow for a pull-up.
He’s had the freedom to do that far more often at Mizzou. Here’s a look at his shot chart for the season, courtesy of CBB Analytics.
There’s not a shade of blue to be found. The junior guard is one of 11 players in the country with 50/40/90 shooting splits — he’s the highest scoring of that group, averaging a career-high 12.8 points per game.
During that initial interview I had with him this summer, Bates said he felt like Missouri was “a cheat code” because of how much joining the Tigers was helping with his development. He’s improved to 45.8% from outside now. Before this past week’s games, he’d made more than half his treys.
He’s been even more effective moving closer to the basket. According to CBB Analytics, Bates’ 62.1% mark in the mid-range ranks in the 94th percentile among all NCAA Division I guards. It’s a shot that he’s slowly become more comfortable with this season. Per HoopMath.com, 32.3% of Bates’ field goal attempts came from 2-pointers away from the rim last year at Indiana. This season, that number’s risen to 37.3%.
It’s also a shot that former Mizzou guard DeAndre Gholston made work for him last season. While digging in on a feature about Gholston last season, I remember hearing that the Tigers’ coaching staff considered mid-rangers to be a “bronze-level” look, rather than silver or gold, because they aren’t very valuable on a points-per-chance basis. But, as the coaches told me, it’s still incredibly important to have somebody who can convert on those looks because when you’re playing against some of the best defense in the country, like the SEC has, you’re not going to be afforded very many silver- and gold-level shots. Bates has become elite in that aspect of the game, even better than Gholston. In conference play, he’s 14-15 from the mid-range.
He’s getting more encouragement bolting his way to the rim, too. I mentioned in a message board post a few weeks ago that associate head coach Charlton “C.Y.” Young told me he had Bates in his office every day to look at film on his finishing. I also caught this moment after the team’s game against Georgia on Jan. 6:
According to HoopMath.com, Bates’ shots at the rim accounted for just 16.5% of his field goal attempts with the Hoosiers last season, connecting on them at a 56.2% clip. This season, his shots at the rim have nearly doubled, accounting for 32.5% of his looks, making 64.7% of them. (There is a slight difference in percentages between HoopMath.com and CBB Analytics — they likely don’t have the same definition for “at the rim” shots.)
I’ve seen a few posters on the board suggesting that Bates could be a candidate to enter the NBA Draft this offseason. There currently isn’t much traction on that front. He’s not in any of the mainstream draft analysts’ mock drafts or big boards. Google the words “Tamar Bates draft” and you won’t find much that pops up. He’s not a supersized guard and doesn’t have superhero athleticism. He needs to shoot more 3s (his attempts per game have fallen from 2.8 last year to 2.5 this year), continue to prove he’s capable of handling a larger share of on-the-ball duties and stand out a little more on the defensive end to reach his ceiling.
But he’s certainly skilled and is playing himself into the draft conversation. If he keeps performing at the level he’s at, shooting the ball as efficiently as he has while posting 18.8 points per game against SEC opponents, he’s going to get noticed by the pros. At the very least, I wouldn’t be shocked if he declares for the draft and then returns to school for his last year of eligibility to get the feedback he needs to improve his stock.
I think the move to Missouri for Bates individually has gone about as well as he could’ve hoped. He’s the son of an MU alumnus, playing just a couple of hours east from his hometown of Kansas City, Kan., and has become the obvious candidate for the Tigers to build around heading into next season. This year’s been rough for the team as a whole, but Bates is a reason to hope it’ll get better.
So instead, I wanted to shift the focus this week on Tamar Bates, who’s been one of the few real bright spots this year. I remember meeting Bates for the first time this summer and I asked him if the move from Indiana to Missouri was a bigger adjustment on the court or off the court. It’s an easy ice-breaker I asked all the newcomers. And the typical responses you get are, “It’s a little bit of both … I’ve gotta get used to the terminology here … I’ve gotta build chemistry with my teammates … I come from a bigger town, so Columbia’s a little small … I’m from a small town, so Columbia’s a bit big,” etc.
But Bates’ answer stood out a bit.
“At this point in my college career, it's all about what's going on inside the gym,” he said.
If you look at Bates’ highlights while he was at Indiana, you’ll notice that the Hoosiers mostly utilized him off the ball as a spot-up shooter. He thrived in that role coming off the bench, hitting 37.4% of his 3-pointers as a sophomore. But you’ll also see in those highlights that Bates displayed the potential to do more. If a pass came late and/or a defender closed out on him quick, Bates proved capable of pump-faking his man and driving to the rim for a layup or to the elbow for a pull-up.
He’s had the freedom to do that far more often at Mizzou. Here’s a look at his shot chart for the season, courtesy of CBB Analytics.
There’s not a shade of blue to be found. The junior guard is one of 11 players in the country with 50/40/90 shooting splits — he’s the highest scoring of that group, averaging a career-high 12.8 points per game.
During that initial interview I had with him this summer, Bates said he felt like Missouri was “a cheat code” because of how much joining the Tigers was helping with his development. He’s improved to 45.8% from outside now. Before this past week’s games, he’d made more than half his treys.
He’s been even more effective moving closer to the basket. According to CBB Analytics, Bates’ 62.1% mark in the mid-range ranks in the 94th percentile among all NCAA Division I guards. It’s a shot that he’s slowly become more comfortable with this season. Per HoopMath.com, 32.3% of Bates’ field goal attempts came from 2-pointers away from the rim last year at Indiana. This season, that number’s risen to 37.3%.
It’s also a shot that former Mizzou guard DeAndre Gholston made work for him last season. While digging in on a feature about Gholston last season, I remember hearing that the Tigers’ coaching staff considered mid-rangers to be a “bronze-level” look, rather than silver or gold, because they aren’t very valuable on a points-per-chance basis. But, as the coaches told me, it’s still incredibly important to have somebody who can convert on those looks because when you’re playing against some of the best defense in the country, like the SEC has, you’re not going to be afforded very many silver- and gold-level shots. Bates has become elite in that aspect of the game, even better than Gholston. In conference play, he’s 14-15 from the mid-range.
He’s getting more encouragement bolting his way to the rim, too. I mentioned in a message board post a few weeks ago that associate head coach Charlton “C.Y.” Young told me he had Bates in his office every day to look at film on his finishing. I also caught this moment after the team’s game against Georgia on Jan. 6:
According to HoopMath.com, Bates’ shots at the rim accounted for just 16.5% of his field goal attempts with the Hoosiers last season, connecting on them at a 56.2% clip. This season, his shots at the rim have nearly doubled, accounting for 32.5% of his looks, making 64.7% of them. (There is a slight difference in percentages between HoopMath.com and CBB Analytics — they likely don’t have the same definition for “at the rim” shots.)
I’ve seen a few posters on the board suggesting that Bates could be a candidate to enter the NBA Draft this offseason. There currently isn’t much traction on that front. He’s not in any of the mainstream draft analysts’ mock drafts or big boards. Google the words “Tamar Bates draft” and you won’t find much that pops up. He’s not a supersized guard and doesn’t have superhero athleticism. He needs to shoot more 3s (his attempts per game have fallen from 2.8 last year to 2.5 this year), continue to prove he’s capable of handling a larger share of on-the-ball duties and stand out a little more on the defensive end to reach his ceiling.
But he’s certainly skilled and is playing himself into the draft conversation. If he keeps performing at the level he’s at, shooting the ball as efficiently as he has while posting 18.8 points per game against SEC opponents, he’s going to get noticed by the pros. At the very least, I wouldn’t be shocked if he declares for the draft and then returns to school for his last year of eligibility to get the feedback he needs to improve his stock.
I think the move to Missouri for Bates individually has gone about as well as he could’ve hoped. He’s the son of an MU alumnus, playing just a couple of hours east from his hometown of Kansas City, Kan., and has become the obvious candidate for the Tigers to build around heading into next season. This year’s been rough for the team as a whole, but Bates is a reason to hope it’ll get better.
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