IU's Tamar Bates expected to be among top impact freshmen this year
Indiana's freshman class is expected to play big roles for the Hoosiers throughout their careers and some could see that return earlier.
One of those players is four-star guard Tamar Bates. Bates committed to Indiana after re-opening his commitment from Texas following the departure of head coach Shaka Smart. It took Mike Woodson just two weeks to land Bates.
“Tamar is a tremendous young man who will bring so much to our program,” Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. “I think the first thing that stands out to me is that he is a winner. He brings a high level of energy on the court and is regarded as an unselfish teammate. He is an outstanding defender who makes three-pointers at a high percentage, can attack the rim, has great vision and the awareness to make plays for others.”
And according to Jon Rothstein, Bates will be one of the top impact freshmen this season. Rothstein recently put out his top 25 impact freshmen and the Indiana guard was on the list.
"Smooth and skilled, Bates was originally committed to Texas before opting to play for Mike Woodson in Bloomington," Rothstein said. "Don’t be shocked if he finds a place in the Hoosiers’ starting lineup and instantly performs like one of the best freshmen in the Big Ten."
The Kansas native transferred from Piper (KS) High School to national-power IMG Academy (FL) ahead of his senior year. As a junior, Bates averaged 22.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He also shot 58 percent from the field and 44 percent from three. This year, he helped lead IMG to GIECO Nationals.
"Bates is a shot maker, the most essential tool in today’s game and Bates has it in spades. He played a vital role on this season’s IMG team as the best perimeter shooter, but also their best perimeter defender," Rivals' national analyst Jamie Shaw said. "It may be easy to pigeonhole Bates into the 3 & D moniker, and that is not a bad thing, but he has a little more shake to his game than that. Bates is good in transition and can knock down a 1-2 dribble pull up, but make no mistakes his offensive game is predicated on his deep range."
In Indiana's international trip to the Bahamas, Bates came off of the bench in both games and averaged 11.5 points in 22.5 minutes per game. He also shot 53.3 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and 83.3 percent from the free throw line.
“This offseason I’ve been working on my decision-making from the point guard spot,” Bates said. … “Continue to develop my right hand, be a constant talker, constant energy-giver. I’ve been getting a lot of shots up off the dribble, trying to tighten my handle, but really just being able to play that one and two spot.”
Bates was ranked as the No. 33 overall recruit in the class of 2021 Rivals150 rankings. He was also ranked as the No. 8 shooting guard.
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