Lattin Improves His Range and Influence

You can learn a lot when the Sooners speak about their teammates. Before the start of preseason practice, each player was asked to fill out the team's annual player poll with questions ranging from “What's your favorite snack?” to “Which teammate is most likely to run for president?” Fun questions aside, there was just one question that received a unanimous answer.

“Who is the best vocal leader?”

Each player answered, “Khadeem Lattin.”

One of two returning starters from last year's Final Four squad, Lattin solidified himself in the OU lineup with his defensive skills. Averaging 2.1 blocks per game, he led the Big 12 in blocked shots and earned himself a place on the Big 12 All-Defensive Team. He averaged 2.7 rejections per game in league contests and registered at least six blocks on five occasions.

Although Lattin's defensive efforts have been his identity for the past two seasons, head coach Lon Kruger expects the 6-9, 212-pound forward to take on a bigger role in the Sooner offense.

"He'll probably be the biggest surprise for the fans because he can really score."
— Lon Kruger

“He's developed very well,” said Kruger. “He'll probably be the biggest surprise for the fans because he can really score, and he wasn't asked to do that last year, didn't get as many opportunities to do that. But we'll be expecting him to do that because he'll have one of the biggest changes in role. He's going to continue to crowd the lane and contest shots and block shots but on the offensive end we'll expect him to do a lot more of what he can do. He just hasn't been in position to do that as much to this point.”

In addition to his growing role in the Sooner offense, Lattin has also embraced his new role as a team leader. With a roster containing 11 freshmen and sophomores, Lattin and senior guard Jordan Woodard are the only upperclassmen who averaged over three minutes per game last season. For Kruger, finding a voice of veteran leadership on his young team was a top preseason priority. He didn't have to wait long to see where it would come from, as Lattin found that voice early on his own.

“Because of the makeup of our team last year, Khadeem really wasn't cast in that role because Buddy [Hield], Isaiah [Cousins] and Ryan [Spangler] led in pretty much every way,” said Kruger. “Yet Khadeem showed potential and an ability to do that. Now we need him very badly to do exactly that, so him stepping out, being vocal, he works hard every day and leads by example. No surprise in the vote by the teammates because Khadeem has been that guy who has led the way both in action and vocally.”

For Lattin, he's always seen himself as a leader. Now, he gets to show off his improvement on the offensive end while demonstrating his voice on the court and in the locker room.

“I love it,” said Lattin. “I picture myself as a leader always even when our older guys were still here. It was exciting to really just get the role and coaches really pushing for me.”

Lattin's leadership goes beyond his voice – he was also voted as the team's best leader by example. His change in offensive roles has forced him to spend more time working on his shot and mid-range game in the offseason, and his dedication to perfecting his craft hasn't gone unnoticed by his younger teammates.

“We had so many offensive guys last year and Khadeem played his role so well,” said freshman forward Matt Freeman. “Now he's taken a big leadership role and you can see the time he put into his game. He's in the gym as much as he can, outside of school and practice. It's paying off because he's turning into an offensive force and that's going to help us huge this year.”

Christian James, who grew up playing with Lattin in the Houston area, is not surprised by his teammate's offensive progression.

“I have known him my whole life,” said James. “He idealizes K.G. [Kevin Garnett] and that's a big part of him. He's trying to push his range back; he's been shooting the 3 ball pretty well. Once he finds his rhythm, it's downhill from there. We know that he is going to block shots and stuff like that. We are trying to get him going on the block, his mid-range jumpers and from there he can just expand his range.”

The growing process consumed Lattin's entire offseason. He and the coaching staff identified areas of improvement and he has worked tirelessly to grow his game.

“Before preseason started, I really wanted to focus on getting a strong offensive game and figuring out some moves that I can always go too no matter what situation I am in and having to come back to those moves,” said Lattin. “So Coach Hartman, Coach Crutchfield, Coach Kevin [Kruger] and I have just really gotten in the gym and figured out what is best for me as a scorer and where I get the best looks from, so after that you just keep working…You will definitely be seeing a few 3s going up by me. You will be seeing a lot of mid-range jump shots, mid-range moves. I really, really worked on my mid-range game.”

Becoming a scorer takes time, patience and the ability to trust the process set forth by Kruger. Lattin believes in that process and the required work because he's seen it happen first hand in players like Hield and Spangler. He credits his work ethic to the players in the program he played alongside last year and sees it continue to exist in himself and the younger Sooners.

“Jordan [Woodward] is a gym rat and I came in following behind Isaiah, Buddy and Ryan,” said Lattin. “It's taking over the tradition here at Oklahoma. We work even when we are exhausted and have nothing else to give...our freshmen just took that philosophy and ran with it.”

For underclassmen like Freeman, that work ethic and lead-by-example mentality is evident in Lattin and directly impacts the Sooner program.

“When you see someone in the gym, it always pushes you,” said Freeman. “I learned that last year when I saw those guys coming in and that pushed me. Khadeem is carrying on what they put in place and what it means to this program. For us to be a successful program, that's what it takes. Khadeem has taken that on his back and now we just have to follow him.”