Marcus Hatten is a 32 year old 186cm point guard that is playing his 11 th professional and first in Germany. He started his basketball career in 1999 with  Tallahassee (Fla.) JC. H eplayed at St Johns from 2001-003 winning the NIT title in his senior year. As a rookie in 2003, he was in training camp with the Los Angeles Clippers and then played in Poland and Spain. In 2004-2005 he started the season with the  Denver Nuggets (NBA): released at the end of Oct.’04, in Dec.’04 was tested by Ramat Hasharon (Israel-Premier L., starting five) and signed for the rest of season: 19 games: Score-4(20.3ppg), 5.9rpg, 2.7apg, Steals-2(2.6spg), 2FGP: 53.9%, 3FGP: 26.5%. In 2005-2006 he played for  Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Israel-Premier) Israeli League: 30 games: Score-1(23.0ppg), 5.5rpg, 2.9apg, 2.2spg, 2FGP: 48.5%, 3PT: 28.7%, FT: 76.3%; FIBA Europe Cup: 6 games: Score-1(22.7ppg), 4.3rpg, 3.3apg, 1.7spg, 1.0bpg, 2FGP: 51.6%, 3FGP: 18.2%, FT: 69.8%. In 2006-2007 he played for  Panellinios Athens (Greece-A1), in Oct.’06 moved to Elitzur Ashkelon (Israel-Premier League) playing  26 games: Score-3(20.0), 5.0rpg, 4.5apg, Steals-1(2.7), 2FGP: 55.0%, 3PT: 28.2%, FT: 76.6%. In 2007-2008 he played for Legea Scafati Basket (Italy-SerieA) playing  32 games: 15.9ppg, 5.0rpg, 2.7apg, 2.7spg, 2FGP:52.8%, 3PT:29.7%, FT:68.4%. in 2008-2009: New Basket Brindisi (Italy-Lega2) he played  30 games: Score-4(20.6ppg), 5.2rpg, 2.1apg, 3.2spg, FGP: 57.9%, 3PT: 27.0%, FT: 77.2%. In 2009-2010: UCC Casalpusterlengo (Italy-Lega2) he played  30 games: 14.9ppg, 6.2rpg, Assists-1(4.8apg), Steals-3(3.5spg), FGP: 49.1%, 3PT: 28.4%, FT: 65.8%. In 2010-2011 he played for Dexia Mons-Hainaut (Belgium-D)  EuroChallenge: 14 games: 10.4ppg, 5.3rpg, 3.4apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 44.3%, 3PT: 28.0%, FT: 73.4%; Belgian League: 38 games: 10.6ppg, 4.7rpg, Assists-2(3.6apg), Steals-2(2.3spg), FGP: 51.8%, 3PT: 39.2%, FT: 67.9%. He played for  VAP Kolossos Rodou (Greece-A1) the last two seasons. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

Marcus thanks for talking to German Hoops. How did you celebrate your first Thanksgiving in Germany. Did you hang out with the players and have a nice Turkey feast?

I had fun with the team we had ah gathering with fans and sponsors so I enjoyed it.

You are playing your first season in Germany for MBC and in your 9th country. What is your first impression of Germany as a country and the basketball league Beko BBL?

It’s very competitive and up and down style it’s similar to the states way of playing.

Has it been a huge culture shock coming from a bigger sized city Baltimore to a very small town of Weissenfels?

No not really I can adapt to any environment but I like the European lifestyle so I’m always looking forward to experiencing the life culture of Germany .

You were signed very late into the season which has been untypical for you in your career. Do you feel for guys like Michael King who is home in Baltimore looking for a team? How difficult was it waiting and waiting trying to find a team?

Yea this was the 1st I waited to sign but it wasn’t a difficult process I was just waiting for a situation that was good for me, but had no idea about the situation here in MBC until I signed

How important and a factor was that your ex teammate Michael Cufree is on the team? Did he influence you somewhat in making your decision?

Mike Cuffe is a good friend of mine and I am glad the we got a chance to play on the same team again. He’s a very good player

You come to MBC as a type of saviour guy coming to a struggling team. The club got you to help strengthen the playmaking. What is your main role on the team?

Two things I want do is 1st is win and 2nd is have a great year stats wise.

What is a strength in your game that doesn´t get noticed right away?

A strength in my game that goes unnoticed is that I make other players better on my team

What has it been playing with Josh Parker. He is a scoring point guard. How have you been able to help him on the court?

Well being as that I’m a scoring guard I try to tell him the same things that will make him a better decision maker. Things that will make the game much easier for him. Josh is a good player

You have played two games in the Beko BBl so far and have played in many top leagues in Europe like Greece and Italy. What has been your impression of the Beko BBL. Where would you rate it to the other leagues that you have played in?

The BBL league is an up an coming league it will be one of the best leagues in Europe in the years to come. Greece and Italy has the history so they will forever be at the top

How has it been like working with Silvano Poropat. You already played 29 minutes against  FC Bayern Munich. Has he guided you in a direction in more wanting you to distribute the ball to get the playmaking going or having that healthy combination of scoring and getting assists?

He wants to win so that’s always good. The time that I’ve been practice here for him has been a very intense time. He’s big on intensity

Early in your basketball career you took part in the Clippers and Nuggets training camps. What kind of experience were they and did you notice early that the NBA was not going to be a cake walk to make?

Having a opportunity to play for the Clippers and the Nuggets was a great experience got to play against the best players in the world. Wish I would’ve got an opportunity to really play I know I would’ve been a household name in the NBA. But I’m forever grateful for those opportunities.

You won the 2011 cup with Dexia Mons-Hainaut (Belgium-D1). What made this team so special that season?

In Mons we had a lot of good talent and the guys really wanted to win. Plus we all got along on and off the court. We all saw that we had a chance to do something special and we did

You played two seasons with Marci Killingsworth. What are your nicest memories with him on and off the court?

Marco Killingsworth is a very good friend of mine and we enjoyed playing with each other and we pushed each other all the time to get better. It’s like family with me and him. He’s one of the best big men I’ve ever play with. We complimented each other game perfectly.

You played your last two seasons in the NCAA with St Johns from 2001-2003. You won the NIT title in 2003. What will you remember forget about that final game?

When we won the NIT at St.Johns in 2003 was a great moment in my career cause nobody thought that we had what it take to win that year and we proved a lot of people wrong. Those guys were some hard workers and we made the best out of every moment

Where will the NBA journey of the Washington Wizards end this season?

Well I don’t know where the wizards will end up cause I’m a Lakers fan. I think the Kobe will get that 6th ring

What was the last DVD movie that you saw?

The last DVD movie that I saw was Malcolm X. A very intelligent man.

 

Thanks Marcus for the chat.