Media Days!!!

With the start of our new season upon us, media day is like the presentation of our new team to our fans, the city, and the League in general.  Lots of pictures are taken, interviews are done, and everything that goes along with presenting a image of the team to the people.  The most common questions come up almost every year.  "What are your thoughts about the upcoming season?" and "How do you think you will do personally and as a team this year?" The questions are sort of cliché, because if you think about it, its the beginning of the season, and no one is going to believe that they will have a bad year Haha!!!  So, basically, the answers to those questions are often pretty much the same.
This year we had a pretty cool time doing media sessions.  We took tons of team pictures and also lots of individual pictures as well.  Along with that, we filmed a commercial to be played on Television over here encouraging fans to come out and support us this year!!!  (Check it out Below)  This was my first time doing a commercial for a team, but it was definitely a lot of fun.  Even though my part was pretty short (like 5 seconds at the end), I definitely think there is a job for me on the big screen once I'm done playing Hahaha!!!

Later on we had a presentation of the team at Village Cinemas (Movie Theatre here in Thessaloniki) for our administration board, Media, Journalist etc.  Our President and General Managers spoke about the team and the upcoming season and also presented each player individually.  A brief video was shown on every player, followed by each player being presented with their jerseys.  The short video to introduce us was actually very cool!!!  It was exciting to see yourself on such a big screen in a movie theatre.  Our media department did a great job putting the videos together.  (See Below)

Overall Media day went well.  I think we all had fun and felt great presenting a positive image of our team.  Now its time for us to get to work and show that image on the court!!! Thanks for reading, check back next week to keep up with me this season. Blessings from Greece!!

Greece...Start of a new year!!!

Hello World!!! Its been a while since I connected with you guys, but I'm back and ready to start a new season. I promise I will be more informative this year and plan on updating my website with pictures and blogs every week. Well lets get to it....This year I will be playing in the A1 division in Greece. My team name is PAOK located in the 2nd largest city in Greece (behind Athens) Thessaloniki. If your like me, and you don't know much about Greek sports, then you probably have no idea of what PAOK is all about. Let me tell you, PAOK is one of the most famous organizations in Greece. Their fans are AMAZING to say the least. If you google or youtube search PAOK Fans, you will see exactly what I'm talking about. (I'll save the details on that for another blog)

So far everything has been great here in Greece. We have been practicing for quite some time and playing some friendly pre-season games to get ready for the season. Our team is shaping up nicely, as we get to know each other and gel together on the court. I'm extremely excited about what this season could hold for us, I cant wait to kick off our first game and get going!!! Well thats all for now. I'll have more for you guys as the season goes on, check back weekly for pictures and blogs to keep up with me and whats going on over here. Feel free to check out our website (though its not in english) http://www.paokbc.gr/ Until next time....Stay Blessed!!!

Dear Summer....

Whats up everyone, I know its been a few months since my last check-in, but I'm here to update you guys on whats been goin on lately. I had an amazing summer spent at home in the US, mostly in my hometown of Flint, Michigan. But I did get a chance to go a few places as well. I took two vacations over the summer that were a lot of fun and crazy at the same time. Las Vegas, NV and Miami, FL were my two destinations, and let me just say those two places never let me down!!! It was great to relax, have some fun with good friends and just enjoy time off. Spent a lot of time at the pool and on the beach relaxing in the sun and taking time out to enjoy the fruits of my labor. We all need those getaways every now and then to give our mind a body a break from all the hard work we put in on a daily basis.

After the much needed break and vacations, It was time to get back to work and try to improve my game as much as possible. Every year I analyze myself and try to pick out specific points in my game that I want to get better at over the summers. Of course I worked on every aspect of my game to become better overall but the main focus for this summer was Condition & Endurance and becoming a better Ball Handler. Most of my time during the week is spent working out with some of my best friend at Genesys Health Center in Grand Blanc, MI. We're there on a daily basis on average of about 4-6 hours a day. We start by doing some cardio exercises to get our bodies warmed up and ready to work. Next we hit the weights for about an hour to improve our strength and stability. We then hit the court for basketball drill work that include different things everyday. We focus on shooting, ball handling, and endurance while working and pushing each other to the limits. Lastly we get wellness (Sauna, Cold tub, steam room etc.) before we leave, because taking care of your body is the number one objective in this business.

On the weekends me and my crew team up to play in summer league games. This year we competed in the MoneyBall Pro-Am which took place in Lansing, Michigan. My team (Team Flintstones) consisted of Myself, Corey Santee, Greg Burks, Kelvin Torbert, Charlie Bell, Lamar Rice, Desmond Young, and a few other guys who showed up from time to time. We like to play together over the summer because its a way to keep your game sharp while playing in a 5 on 5 atmosphere. Also we just like to play with each other, something we never got to do in High School and College, so its a fun to go out and compete with guys you consider you brothers every summer. I think I had one of my best summers this year as far as basketball goes. I really worked hard and pushed myself everyday to get better. I think it showed in my play in the summer league especially when I had my career high of 53 points. It was one of those games where everything was clicking and going right for me. It definitely felt great to feel that kind of reward for all the work I had put in this summer. This year we took second place, losing a heartbreaking game in the Championship by 2 points. Tough way to lose but I think overall it was a great summer for us and we will be back at it next year!!

Well Summer is over now and its time to get back to work. Time for me to show the improvements in my game when the season starts. Cyprus is my next destination and I'm very excited about this year. It shall be a huge year for me and my team, and hopefully I can grab my first Championship in my professional career. Stay Tuned!!!

Until next time, take care of yourself and Love one another the way God Love us all!!! - BEAN

The end of an Era!!

Whats up readers,

I know I've been gone for too long, but the summer kind of grabbed a hold of me (once I landed in the states after the season) and kept me RIDICULOUSLY busy. It was a long 9 months in Czech Republic, but my team and I enjoyed a great season. All the hard work we put in during the pre-season and throughout the course of the season really paid off. Like every team, we went through our ups and downs, but in the end I can honestly say that we worked very hard and gave everything we had the whole year. We managed a bronze medal finish, losing in the semi-finals to the eventual champions Cez Nymburk. The last 3 years overseas for me have exceeded all of my expectations. I spent all 3 years with the same team (BK Decin) and managed to make some lifetime friendships along the way. Since I stepped foot off the plane my first year there, the club, fans, and people around the city of Decin have always treated me like one of their own!!! I am forever grateful for the memories and bonds I made during my stay in Decin, Czech Republic!! So to the fans, my teammates, coach, and management board......I would like to say THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!!! WIN TOGETHER!!!

Coming down the home stretch!!!

Whats up y'all, we are officially at that part of the season where your body is super tired, you got bumps and bruises that wont go away, and the fatigue of a long season weighs on you heavily. If your an athlete no matter what the sport you know exactly what I'm talking about. Nonetheless it is very important that you continue to work hard or all the work you put in during pre-season and throughout the past 8 months can be out the window. Mental toughness is the key during this time of the year. If you don't have mental toughness you have nothing. This is the attribute that separates the good teams from the great ones. We've took a few tough losses lately that have hurt a little bit, but I think we are determined as a team to push forward and make some noise in the play-offs. Here is a clip of highlights of a tough loss against the first place team that we took not too long ago.



Aside from the basketball side of things, SPRING IS HERE!!! The weather here has been great lately. Been in the high 60's and the sun has been shining!!! This time of year puts me in a great mood for some reason. It just feels good to finally get rid of the cold weather and enjoy life outdoors. Nothing like a walk outside and cookouts on a warm sunny day!!! I'm getting anxious just writing this blog!!!!

Well thanks again for reading and following up with me and my life overseas. Until next time, hopefully I will have something great to blog about as we get into the play-offs. Take care and God Bless!!!

Fazole ze Sin City!!!

Whats up yall!!! Its been a minute since I blogged, but I've been pretty busy lately. The first part of the season recently finished and we are now in group play jockeying for playoff position. If your not familiar with the way out league is set up, it goes a little something like this. We played every team twice which adds up to 20 games for the fist part of the season. The league is then divided into 2 groups, which consists of the top 6 teams in one group and the bottom 6 teams in the other. The top 6 teams play each other twice again which will add up to 10 games and the bottom 6 do the same within their group. How ever you finish in the second stage of the season, determines playoff position. We also take the best 2 teams from the other group to make the 7th and 8th seed. If it sounds a little confusing, don't worry, your not the only one!!!

So we recently played our first game in group plan and won a huge game on the road!!! That makes us 1-0 in group play with 9 more games left until playoffs. It wasn't just a huge win for our team, but it was relieving for me as well, being that I have never won on the road against this team. Kinda feels great to get that monkey off my back!!! Being in group play also equals no days off. Every night we are gonna be playing against one of the top teams. The games have gotten that much more physical and strategic. Every game is a big game, which kinda makes it feel like the playoffs already. But if you know me, Im definitely up for the challenge!!!

Lastly I recently did a interview for a pretty big basketball magazine over here in Czech Republic. I have the feature interview, and also my first magazine COVER!!! The magazine comes out in a few days over here, but the cover has been released already. When I seen it, I went crazy!!! Its a great feeling to see your hard work start to pay off with things like this!!! Ill post a picture of the cover with this blog entry so you all can see it. In the bottom right corner is the title of my interview and it says "Fazole ze Sin City." I know its in Czech and everyone is gonna know what it says and means, but to make a long story short, Fazole means Bean in czech and the Sin City represents Flint, Michigan. The reporter did some research on my hometown before we did the interview, and of course when you look up Flint, MI on the internet, you get a bunch of stuff about how Flint is one of the most dangerous cities in the US. So the interview has a lot of questions about Flint and what it was like growing up. So "Fazole ze Sin City" basically means "Bean from Flint, Michigan."

Thats all for now, everything is going great over here. Its starting to warm up, which is getting me anxious for summertime. My girlfriend is here visiting me until May 1st, so im not so lonely but also takes away from a lot of my mid day naps hahahaha!!! The season is coming down the home stretch, and time is flying by. I'll be home in no time, ready to relax, vacation, and just take it easy and have a great summer. Until next time remember this: Victory loves preparation!!! Are you prepared to Win??

Welcome!!!!

Welcome to my website!!!  It is currently under construction, but I plan on taking this project to the next level and enjoying the ride!!  www.WilliamHatcher25.com will be used to document my basketball career, blogging about my career experiences all over the world, marketing purposes to further help my career advance, and keeping my friends, family, and fans updated with games, and whats going on with me around the globe.  Join me on this journey as I travel the world, experience new cultures, all while working to become the best basketball player I can become.  Who knows if this ride will be long, short, bumpy or smooth.....the only thing that I can promise is, it will be worth it!!!!

Thank you so much for visiting

William Hatcher