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A Houma native has been picked by his peers to be one of the best basketball players in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference for the 2015-16 season.
Ellender graduate and Dillard junior guard Houston Chatman was named to the Preseason All-Conference Team this past week – an honor that he said has motivated him to do great things for the Bleu Devils when the first jump ball is tossed into the air this winter.
He said he’s thankful for the accolade, but knows that it means very little if he doesn’t shine when it matters most during the season.
Chatman earned the distinction after averaging a team-high 11.6 points and 3.7 assists per game as a sophomore last season for Dillard.
This year, Chatman said he wants to do even more to help improve the Bleu Devils from the five-win plateau that the team had last season.
“When I first found out that I was named Preseason All-Conference, it was shocking to me,” Chatman said. “It definitely was an exciting moment, but it doesn’t end there. The season hasn’t started, and I still have a lot to prove to others.”
Chatman doesn’t have too much to prove to folks in the Houma-Thibodaux area.
By now, we’re very familiar with how good the combination guard can be with the ball in his hands. During his time at Ellender, Chatman was one of the most underrated, but effective players in the Houma-Thibodaux area throughout his career – a combination guard who possessed the rare ability to score both behind the 3-point arc and in the paint.
During his senior season with the Patriots, Chatman filled up the stat sheet, averaging 19 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game. Teamed with fellow collegiate standout Gibby Talbot, Chatman and the Patriots were a force in the 2011-12 season, ending the year with a 23-9 record and a trip to the second round of the Class 4A State Playoffs.
Because of that success, Chatman had his choice of collegiate offers out of high school. He said he picked Dillard because the program felt right and he wanted to help build something special. The Bleu Devils have struggled in recent years with on-court success, but Chatman said the warmth of the campus has made his decision one that he doesn’t regret – even if the team went just 5-25 a year ago.
“I love it here,” Chatman said. “The school itself is family-oriented. Being in New Orleans is tons of fun and there are no dull moments.”
On the court, it hasn’t been too bad for Chatman, either.
The Ellender graduate redshirted his first season at Dillard in 2012-13, and sat out the entire season to get acclimated to the college game.
Chatman said the difference between prep and college ball is like the difference between the colors black and white. He said it’s almost like a different sport entirely because of the enhanced speed and athleticism of the players on the floor.
“It’s nothing like high school ball at all,” Chatman said. “The tempo of the game is much faster, the competition is a lot harder and every day someone is competing for your spot. Every day in practice and in games, you must compete.
“In my mind, I constantly tell myself, ‘What makes you an asset to your team? Exactly what can you do to help your team win?’”
For Chatman, more times than not, the answer to that question is scoring the ball. He’s been doing that since his first days on campus.
As a freshman in the 2013-14 season, the Houma native led the Bleu Devils in scoring, averaging 11.6 points per game.
He shot 41 percent from the field and 16 percent from the 3-point line.
After dedicating an entire offseason to being more efficient offensively, Chatman thrived last season. His points per game average remained the exact same at 11.6 points per game. But he raised his 3-point shooting percentage to 34 percent. He also improved his free throw shooting, jumping from 73 percent as a freshman to 82 percent as a sophomore – a number he wants to see go up again as a junior.
This past summer, Chatman said he continued to work, dedicating countless hours to his craft. This winter, he wants to be a better-rounded player in all aspects of his game.
That dedication is why he’s a team leader, according to veteran first-year Dillard coach Mike Newell, who said he’s already taken note of the Houma native’s work ethic and leadership ability.
“He takes pride in his work,” Newell said. “And that’s something you can’t teach someone to do or have.”
Now, it’s time to win some games.
Dillard has won just 15 total games in the past four seasons – one of the lowest points in the history of the program.
But right now none of that matters to Chatman, because he said he and his teammates are buying into what Newell is instilling.
The Bleu Devils have several returning starters from last season, and Chatman thinks the team will have a huge turnaround season.
And that, to Chatman, would be more important and special than any individual All-Conference honor could ever be in the timeline of his career.
“I expect a complete turnaround,” Chatman said. “We have a new coach that came in, and several talented players surrounding him. We expect to win, and give Dillard and our supporters something to enjoy, while maintaining excellence in the classroom. We want to make a run at a conference championship and then a national championship, as well.”•
