Early signing period: Golden Gate's Orrington Hamilton commits to Flagler College
For a relative newcomer to basketball, Orrington Hamilton has proven to be a quick study.
The Golden Gate High School guard moved to Florida from Jamaica, where he played sports like soccer, cricket and track, five years ago.
Under the watchful eye of Titans coaches Greg Anderson and Guy Hensley, Hamilton has blossomed from basketball newcomer to genuine talent. He showed just how far he’s come Wednesday, signing with Division II Flagler College in St. Augustine to continue his academic and athletic career. At Flagler, he’ll be reunited with former Titans star Jeffercy Jean, now a sophomore with the Saints.
Hamilton said he had drawn interest from Division I programs Marshall, VMI and Stetson, but made just the one visit to Flagler.
“When I went on my visit, everybody made it fun for me to be there,” Hamilton said. “It felt like that’s where I needed to be and I said ‘let’s do it.’”
Hamilton enjoyed a solid junior season for the Titans, averaging 13.8 points per game and leading the Titans with his .420 shooting percentage from 3-point land. He worked feverishly in the offseason with Hensley on improving his overall skills, including ball-handling and shooting.
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“Guy Hensley is a fantastic skills coach. He worked with Orrington all summer,” Anderson said. “You could see the improvement in his game, mainly his confidence as a player.”
Hensley praised Hamilton’s work ethic, saying he’s always talking basketball and trying to find ways he can improve his game. Hensley said Hamilton had all of the physical tools, but just needed to refine the mental part of the game.
“I think the main thing was getting him to know how good he was and how good he could be,” Hensley said. “He was unsure of some of the things he could do, and I had to reassure him he could do all those things. We worked on some individual skills, too, things like ball-handling, the way he holds the ball when dribbling, how to take advantage of the defender. But the main thing was getting him to realize how good he is. He’s so quick and explosive. He can go by anyone (off the dribble.)”
Hensley said Hamilton’s late entry into competitive basketball was the main culprit for his lack of confidence.
“He didn’t have the instincts that someone who grows up in the United States might have,” Hensley said. “Kids over here pick up a ball way before Orrington did, so we had to help him develop those instincts. He’s been playing on pure God-given talent, but he wasn’t always reading things as quickly as some kids do. But he was still one of the best players in the area due to his skill set. This summer, we watched a lot of film and broke down areas of the game, which helped him read the game better. He kind of took off from there.”
Flagler top assistant Kyle Cregan had built a strong relationship with the Golden Gate staff through his pursuit of Jean two years ago. Cregan attended a summer workout to take a look at Hamilton, and he came away impressed.
“He told us ‘That’s the guard I want,’ and things happened pretty quickly after that,” Anderson said. “Coach Hensley and I are really high on Flagler. It’s a good situation, with Jeffercy already being there. It’s a fantastic school in a really nice area. We didn’t push him to make his decision. He just fell in love with the place and realized it was the perfect situation for him.”
Anderson said Hamilton is the first Golden Gate basketball player to ever sign during the NCAA’s early signing period.
Hamilton said he’s excited to be reunited with Jean. The two played together on the 2014-15 Golden Gate squad that advanced to the regional championship game, when Jean was the Titans’ star and Hamilton was a sophomore reserve.
“We’ve been close friends ever since,” Hamilton said. “I followed his games online last year, and I’m looking forward to playing with him again.”
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Hamilton said Flagler runs an uptempo offense, which is what he’s been used to with the Titans.
“I watched them practice and they play like we do at Golden Gate,” Hamilton said. “They play fast. They take quick shots. That’s the type of player I am. I think I’ll fit in pretty well there.”
With the decision behind him, Hamilton says he’s looking ahead to his upcoming season at Golden Gate. The Titans are coming off a 24-5 season, but were upset by rival Palmetto Ridge in the regional semifinals.
“(Picking a school) is really stressful,” Hamilton said. “It’s nice I don’t have to worry about where I’m going. It feels really good to get the stress off my back. We have a really good chance to be better than we were last year. We just need to come together and get the job done.”
ORRINGTON HAMILTON
School: Golden Gate
Sport: Basketball
Position: Guard
Signed with: Flagler College (St. Augustine)
Notes: Ranked second on the Titans in scoring as a junior, averaging 13.8 points per game. … Led Golden Gate in 3-point field goal percentage (.420) and ranked third on the team in assists (1.8) and steals (1.0) per game. … A native of Jamaica, Hamilton and his family moved to the Florida when he was in seventh grade. He started playing basketball the next year. … At Flagler, he’ll be reunited with former Golden Gate teammate Jeffercy Jean, a sophomore on the Saints basketball team this season.