It's time to check back in with Kenny Hatch, 10 years down the road from the publishing of his initial Nor Cal High School and College Basketball Central feature. Here's the link to Hatch's complete earlier article.
Never taking 'no' for an answer in his lifelong pursuit of greater
challenges in earning basketball playing time, Kenny Hatch began as a
4-foot-11, 97 pounder, in his attempts to earn roster spots at St.
Ignatius first and then Jefferson High. Both failed to come to
fruition. As a junior back again at St. Ignatius, Hatch then took
a position working as the varsity boys basketball team manager. He
finally earned an SI roster spot as a senior, making such a solid
impression as he won'the 'player who works the hardest' team
award.
Following his dream, he enrolled at University of Kansas but his phone calls
seeking a tryout weren't returned. Instead,
Hatch played for a club team during his short tenure in Lawrence.
He returned home and enrolled at Cañada College in Redwood City,
about 25 miles south of San Francisco.
Two seasons later, his play at Cañada earned him a spot on DII Texas A&M International's roster. It was one of his efforts during the late season playoffs that made his journey to The Lone Star State happen. In one game, Hatch made what turned out to be the play of his basketball life to date. "I had just turned the ball over, so I knew I had to get the ball back. It was at mid-court where I tipped the ball away from their point guard. I dove on the ball, got fouled and hit the free throws. (Texas A&M International) Coach (Bryan) Weakley was in the stands watching the game. Later, he told me that play convinced him to offer me a scholarship because he wanted guys who hustled." As a senior with the Dustdevils, TAMI won the conference with Hatch as a solid contributor.
As Hatch put it of his time in Laredo, "it was the reality of being comfortable with being uncomfortable, and allowing myself to be coached, even when I was being stubborn."
Hatch then headed overseas, with a roster spot designated for him in England. However, that promise failed to materialize but he soon moved on to a tryout camp in Spain and earned a contract. He powered past this particular challenge knowing he had but a used one-way ticket in his pocket. That's one of the backbones of Hatch's success, convincing others of his value in do-or-die situations.
Now on to a new Kenny Hatch article (October 2023)
"I always wanted to be involved with player development work and I actually did some camps when I was playing in Spain and Italy," Kenny Hatch noted. He married last summer to a longtime girlfriend, a former Cal State East Bay soccer player familiar with the details of modern sports, and decided to end his playing days and go full focus on basketball skill development.
"I began generating a clientele using St. Ignatius (aided by former SI Coach Rob Marcaletti) and local gyms as venues," Hatch explained. Knowing this was a stopgap situation, Hatch kept looking for space he could call his own, square footage he could develop into a basketball training center. On Harrison Street in San Francisco, he found the right building. "For 30 years, it had been used as a fencing academy. The ceilings were 20 feet high. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, a real learning process in getting it ready."
Alongside this work, simultaneously came the just-as-important elements of networking and making connections as well as generating interest utilizing such prominent social media as LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook alongside the old school method of posting flyers.
Among his number of clients is Jake Paxton, a 6-foot
guard now entering his senior season at San Francisco State
and formerly of Rio Americano High and Sacramento City
College. Paxton actually showed Hatch the now 10-year-old
article he had come across on this web site which spurred Hatch to
reach out.
Hatch now resides in nearby Daly City.
For further information, head to Kenny Hatch's site.
Kenny Hatch Basketball is physically located at 2419 Harrison Street, Suite 10, San Francisco, CA.
No comments:
Post a Comment