Tamar Bates Enters Sophomore Year With Newfound Purpose, Motivation

Indiana guard Tamar Bates withstood the loss of a close family member during his freshman season as he navigated life as a Big Ten basketball player. But after the birth of his daughter, Bates feels a heightened level of focus as he approaches what he hopes to be a big sophomore season.

Jack Ankony | Aug 6, 2022

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Indiana Hoosiers

Tamar Bates endured an eight-day stretch packed with five games in three cities.

But there was one more destination – the most important – Bates had to reach before he could catch his breath.

The morning after Indiana's season-ending loss to Saint Mary's in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, Bates caught a 5 a.m. flight from Portland, Ore. to Utah, then back home to Kansas City, Kan.

And two days later, on March 20, Leilani Nicole Bates was born.

"As soon as I saw her," Bates said. "It's kind of like a flipped switch."

Bates' first year as a Hoosier came with plenty of ups and downs. He arrived in Bloomington as a borderline five-star recruit, but he shot just 33.8 percent from the field and 29.8 percent from 3. He battled for playing time, and he lost a close family member in December, which teammate Trayce Jackson-Davis said derailed Bates' season.

As Bates put it, the only thing that could prepare him for college basketball was college basketball. Going through a "storm" in his freshman season, Bates senses he's a stronger basketball player, and his mental strength has improved as a result.

"That's some things you can't control," Jackson-Davis said. "It really messes up your mentality. I think he's back. He's got his head straight. He's ready to get to work."

Indiana Hoosiers guard Tamar Bates (53) shoots the basketball against Saint Mary's Gaels center Mitchell Saxen (10) during the second half during the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center. — Indiana Hoosiers guard Tamar Bates (53) shoots the basketball against Saint Mary's Gaels center Mitchell Saxen (10) during the second half during the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center / Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

After the birth of his daughter, whether Bates is rising early in the morning or staying up late, he feels more focused in fatherhood and in basketball. And after this life-changing event, Bates has a new purpose. He's providing for a family, hoping to give Leilani anything she could ever dream of. He's also instilling lessons of hard work, which he learned growing up.

"[My parents] did a fantastic job," Bates said. "But I want to out-do them."

It's been just over four months since Leilani's birth, and so far, navigating his new life as a father and a college athlete has been nowhere near as scary as he expected. Bates said it's been pretty easy, in fact, because his sole focus is in two places: basketball and being a dad. Bates' daughter has been home with family members, who have been supportive and willing to help any way possible.

He tries not to combine these two aspects of his life, but Bates is starting to find parallels between basketball and fatherhood. Leilani is still young, but he relates teaching her family values to being a leader on the basketball court. One day, he hopes to share the court with her.

"I feel like she'll just eventually want to pick the ball up because we're going to be in the gym all the time," Bates said. "That will be special."

Approaching his sophomore season at Indiana, Bates' reinvigorated focus has led to reaching his first goal of the summer. Spending hours in the weight room with Indiana Director of Athletic Performance Clif Marshall, Bates kept his body fat down while adding 15 pounds of muscle. He now weighs in at 200 pounds and said stretching, yoga and conditioning will prepare him for the upcoming season.

"I know going through the Big Ten, that was really physical," Bates said. "You've got to be able to throw your weight around a little bit so you can compete."

The biggest difference for Bates and the Hoosiers this summer has been a heightened level of familiarity and chemistry throughout the roster. Last season, Bates, Xavier Johnson, Parker Stewart, Miller Kopp, Michael Durr and Logan Duncomb, were all fresh faces in Bloomington. It was a learning process all year long.

But ahead of the 2022-2023 campaign, Bates feels that the team is on the same page with Woodson's expectations, which has made it easier to bring along the four incoming freshmen. With a year of Big Ten experience, Bates has a better understanding of where to find his shots within the rhythm of the offense. And despite a 33.8 field-goal percentage as a freshman, Bates is still going to let it fly.

"I'm a basketball player and shooters shoot," Bates said. "I'm going to shoot the ball and just have confidence and believe in my teammates."

Indiana Hoosiers guard Tamar Bates (53) shoots the ball as Syracuse Orange center Jesse Edwards (14) defends during the first half at the Carrier Dome. (Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports) / USA Today

Bates figures to mix in with Johnson, five-star freshman Jalen Hood-Schifino, Trey Galloway, Anthony Leal and freshman CJ Gunn to complete Indiana's backcourt rotation. Bates has always had confidence in creating his own shot, but he's chief offseason priorities have been decreasing turnovers, improving decision making and defending at a high level. He hopes these improvements will translate into taking pressure off Johnson by being able to handle lead-guard duties.

Bates recently had a conversation with some of Indiana's graduate assistants about NBA forward Andrew Wiggins. Drafted No. 1 overall in 2014 out of Kansas, Wiggins was heralded by many as the NBA's next all-time great. He averaged around 20 points per game across his first five seasons, but the Minnesota Timberwolves remained among the worst teams in the NBA.

Wiggins was traded to the Golden State Warriors during the 2019-2020 season, and he was named an All-Star starter in 2022 en route to winning the NBA Finals. Wiggins' 17.2 points per game was his lowest since his rookie season, but his crucial role was put under a national spotlight as he discovered how to play winning basketball alongside Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

One of Indiana's graduate assistants asked Bates, "How can you have a roll like that to impact a winning team?" Indiana is considered by many to be the Big Ten favorite heading into the 2022-2023, and Bates could see a big leap in production as a sophomore. He's still not expected to be the star of the team with the return of leading scorers Jackson-Davis, Johnson and Race Thompson, but the example Wiggins set has helped Bates learn how he can impact winning basketball.

"Just doing what I do, not getting outside of myself," Bates said. "I can be really good offensively and be good defensively, but I feel like one of my biggest skills is just having energy and always being ready to compete, just my competitive spirit."

Indiana Hoosiers guard Tamar Bates (53) reacts to a play in the first half against the Wyoming Cowboys during the First Four of the 2022 NCAA Tournament at UD Arena. (Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports) / USA Today

With his second season as a Hoosier drawing near, Bates has learned through a tumultuous freshman year that everything won't go as planned. He can't script a perfect season for himself or the team, but that's OK. With newfound perspective and purpose, year two is about so much more.

"[Leilani] being born was the thing that I didn't know that I needed," Bates said. "It gave me a different kind of focus, different kind of drive, different kind of motivation ... And it came at the perfect time."

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