Chris Hartbarger was over 6 feet tall when he was in sixth grade. He grew another 3-4 inches as a seventh-grader.
Now, the Franklin senior stands 6-7.
Some people might not enjoy being so much taller than their peers growing up, but not Hartbarger.
“I’ve always embraced it and enjoyed it,” he said. “Being in sports, I think that kind of helped me being comfortable being that tall and wanting to be that tall.”
Hartbarger played soccer for many years, but the basketball court is where his height really becomes an advantage. It was in middle school when he realized he wanted to work hard and try to become a college basketball player.
He reached that goal recently, officially committing to Warren Wilson College. It’s a private Division III school located in Swannanoa.
“It feels really great my hard work paid off and I’ll be able to continue my athletic career,” Hartbarger said.
Hartbarger played his final season at Franklin after playing at Cherokee. His parents, Buzz and Mary, live in Sylva, but his mother teaches at Cherokee.
Hartbarger attended Cherokee as a freshman, before transferring to Smoky Mountain as a sophomore. But he quickly realized it wasn’t a good fit, and went back to Cherokee. Even though he didn’t participate in any sports at Smoky, he was forced to sit out a year, meaning he wasn’t able to play basketball his sophomore year.
His uncle, Scott Hartbarger, coaches Franklin’s girls basketball team. He joined the WNC Big Cats, an AAU program led by coach Tony Christie, playing games that spring and summer.
He played another year at Cherokee before coming to Franklin.
“I would definitely rate it as the best experience I’ve had playing basketball,” Hartbarger said. “I really enjoyed playing for coach (Doug) Plemmons. I had a great time playing with my teammates. Overall, it was just a great experience.”
Hartbarger averaged 2.2 points and 1.1 rebounds per game. He averaged the most points for the Panthers outside of the starting five.
He shot 51 percent from the floor, second-best on the team.
Plemmons said Hartbarger, who didn’t play a bunch of minutes this past season, has yet to tap into his potential yet.
“This year for us was the most he’s ever played,” Plemmons said. “I just feel like to have four more years – if that’s the route he takes – to have four more years of basketball, it’s really hard to tell how much he could improve.”
He’s got the physical frame, Plemmons said, and he just needs to continue to work out and improve his athleticism. Hartbarger has solid low-post moves, he said, and understands positioning and how to use his body to carve out space.
“From a basketball standpoint, I feel like he is almost just getting started,” Plemmons said.
Hartbarger wants to major in pre-med and become a physical therapist.
He has two older siblings who also played sports when they were younger, and said they were injury prone. He remembers going to their appointments and listening to the physical therapists working with them.
“It’s just something that feels like it would be a good career to help people rehabilitate from injuries,” he said. “You can work with people on a wide range of areas and age groups, from elderly to athletes. It feels like it would be a very rewarding career.”
Blair King, Frankin’s assistant principal and athletic director, has no doubts Hartbarger will be very successful.
“He is an extremely smart young man with all the physical attributes to be a great basketball player,” King said. “He is a very humble young man, very intelligent.”
Hartbarger looked into Warren Wilson after hearing some things about their program. It’s a small school (enrollment is less than 1,000 students), which was something he was looking for.
He took an official visit over Christmas break, meeting faculty members as well as basketball coach Dominique Boone.
It’s the third straight year a player from Franklin has gone to Warren Wilson: Sam Hoyle joined the women’s team in 2018 and Cole Doolittle joined the men in 2019.
“We are thrilled to have Chris be a part of our program,” Boone said. “He is a great young man and will bring a blue-collar attitude that we are looking for in all of our guys. I look forward to seeing him blossom into a great young man and player over the next four years here.”
Hartbarger comes from a basketball family. His grandfather, Jim, coached Western Carolina University for five years in the ’70s.
His uncle, Scott, has coached Franklin’s girls for the past 12 seasons and won his 200th game in February.
Hartbarger thanked his parents; coaches Doug and Tony Plemmons; and coaches Cindy and Tony Christie. He also thanked his grandpa.
“My grandpa worked with me a lot over the years,” he said. “I was always in the gym with him working on stuff. It was great to have him as a mentor.”
Plemmons also mentioned how Hartbarger comes from a great family, one steeped in basketball knowledge. He said Hartbarger is a great kid and an absolute pleasure to be around.
“Never saw anything out of him, not a cross word, not a bad look. Just always came to practice ready to go,” Plemmons said.
“I hope for the best for him as he continues on with his education. To have a chance to play basketball and get an education in the field you’re interested in, that’s a win-win.”