Tatum arrived at school early every morning to get shots up and practice with trainer Drew Hanlen, who now works with multiple other NBA stars. Both had natural gifts, and they did everything they could to maximize them.
By the time he left for Duke, Chaminade middle schoolers ran up to him in the hallways and Chick-fil-A workers in the area treated him to free meals.Ĭlassmates and teachers both remember the work Tkachuk and Tatum put in while at Chaminade. Tatum arrived in seventh grade and stayed through senior year, long enough for him to become a local sensation and a top-10 recruit in the country. National Team Development Program in Michigan. Tkachuk, the son of NHL All-Star Keith Tkachuk, attended Chaminade from sixth to ninth grade before leaving for the U.S. “It was obviously pretty nuts,” says former classmate Will Gladson, a close friend of Tatum who went on to play basketball at Princeton.Īdds Niemeyer: “Just watching it unfold has been incredible.” Hurricanes forward Paul Stastny, whom Matthew will face in the Eastern Conference finals, went there, too.īut Tatum and Matthew Tkachuk, both thriving at age 25, might end up as the school’s two most successful athletic alums when all is said and done - and they were friends in the same grade. Matthew’s younger brother, Brady, also attended Chaminade and is now the captain of the Ottawa Senators.
His mix of skill and the ability to irritate have made him one of the faces of the NHL.Ĭhaminade has had its share of big athletes, including three-time NBA All-Star Bradley Beal, NBA champion David Lee and former NHL All-Star Ben Bishop. Tkachuk, meanwhile, is an MVP finalist in the NHL and led the eighth-seed Florida Panthers to upsets over the Boston Bruins, who had the best record in league history, and then the Toronto Maple Leafs, setting up a series against Carolina. Playing for the Boston Celtics, Tatum finished fourth in this year’s NBA MVP voting, and he set a Game 7 record with 51 points to beat Philadelphia on Sunday as the Celtics advanced to play Miami.
Nowadays, the former classmates are among the biggest stars in their respective sports, and both have reached the Eastern Conference finals.
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