Grant Hill
| Position: Forward-Guard |
Olympic #: 5 |
| Born: 10/5/72 (Dallas, Texas) |
College: Duke University |
| Height: 6’ 8” |
Weight: 225 lbs |
A 6-foot-8 forward with almost unlimited potential, Grant Hill entered the NBA as a highly touted rookie. The son of former Dallas Cowboys running back Calvin Hill, Grant Hill arrived in the NBA with a reputation not only as a big-time basketball player but also as a classy individual who would represent the next generation of superstars. Hill lived up to the billing in his first season, sharing NBA Rookie of the Year honors with the Dallas Mavericks’ Jason Kidd.
Hill enjoyed a standout college career at Duke, where, as a freshman and a sophomore, he was an integral part of a team that won back-to-back NCAA Championships in 1991 and 1992. He was a member of the 1992 USA Basketball developmental team that scrimmaged daily the 1992 Olympic team during its training in San Diego, and was selected to Team USA in 1993, but did not participate due to an injury. The winner of the Henry Iba Award as the nation’s best defender in his junior year, he scored a career-high 18.0 points per game that season. He was a consensus First-Team All-America selection after his senior year.
The Detroit Pistons selected Hill with the third overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft. The combination of his spectacular play and his humble demeanor quickly endeared Hill to NBA fans, who voted him a starter in the 1995 NBA All-Star Game. He went on to share co-NBA Rookie of the Year honors with the Mavericks’ Jason Kidd after leading the Pistons in scoring, steals and minutes, and placing second in assists and rebounds.
Proving in 1995-96 that he was not just talented, but also durable, Hill played in 80 of 82 regular season games and ranked third in the league for minutes played, averaging 40.8 minutes a game. Helping lead the Pistons to 18 more wins than in 1994-95, with Hill leading the way, the Pistons finished with a 46-36 record while making the team's first playoff appearance since 1992. Improving his scoring, rebounding and assists averages, Hill was the only player in the NBA in '95-'96 to rank among the 20 leaders in those three statistical areas.
