Oklahoma basketball success this season largely evolves a veteran cast of starters, but the lone sophomore among the starting five will have a big say in how high and far the Sooners will go.
Forward Khadeem Lattin is the odd man out in a Sooner starting lineup in which three of the five starters are seniors and four members of the quintet have started every one of the last 82 games.
The 6-9 Lattin, who hails from Houston, joined the Sooner starting five this season and quickly established his presence as a formidable force on defense. Lately, however, he has been making strong contributions on the offensive end, as well.
For the season, the sophomore forward is averaging 6.4 points, 6.8 rebounds and just over two blocks in 22 minutes per game. In his last two games, however, against Kansas in the triple-overtime thriller a week ago and last Saturday vs. Kansas State, Lattin has averaged 10 points, 12 rebounds and 6 blocked shots, clearly his best back-to-back performance of the season.
His best shooting game this season was 17 points in a three-point Oklahoma win over Hawaii in the Diamond Head Classic over the Christmas holidays. Lattin’s best performance on the boards was a 14-rebound effort against Kansas to go along with 6 blocked shots. He has progressed from beginning the season as a rebounder and rim protector and has evolved nicely into an offensive contributor.
Asked about the confidence he has gained when the Sooners are on offense, Lattin had this to say in the postgame briefing following last weekend’s win over Kansas State:
“Good stuff has been happening when I touch the ball. So that always helps with confidence. I’ve just been working a lot, getting more comfortable with the four other guys on the court and just making smart decisions when I touch the ball.”
Lattin is getting twice the playing time he averaged last season and his production has nearly tripled what it was in his freshman season. The area of his game that needs the most work is at the free-throw line, which is a typical concern of many basketball bigs. Lattin is shooting just 50 percent at the charity stripe, but he has only shot 24 free throws all season.
One of those free throws came with two seconds remaining in regulation against Kansas. His attempt hit off the back iron and bounded harmlessly off. If he would have made the free throw, however, the Sooners would probably have won the game, 78-77, with such little time remaining.
“Good stuff has been happening when I touch the ball.” —Khadeem Lattin, Sooner forward
Lattin comes from a family with basketball genes. His grandfather, David “Big Daddy” Lattin, was a starter on the legendary Texas Western team that beat Kentucky in the 1966 NCAA championship game. The elder Lattin went on to play professional basketball in the American Basketball Association and the NBA.
“I’m excited about what I’ve done so far,and I’m excited about what I’m going to do in the future and what I can be” OU’s Lattin told the Oklahoma City Oklahoman after his double-double performance against Kansas State. “Because what I am right now isn’t the final product.”
That is an exciting prospect for a team that has the potential of going far this season, and is especially encouraging news for a Sooner men’s team that will lose three senior starters after this season.