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George Hill: 15 things to know about the Sixers’ newest player

Once recruited by John Chaney, he has become a reliable and well-traveled NBA point guard.

The Sixers are the eighth team George Hill has played for in his 13 NBA seasons. He was drafted by San Antonio in 2008.
The Sixers are the eighth team George Hill has played for in his 13 NBA seasons. He was drafted by San Antonio in 2008.Read moreDerick Hingle / AP

1. Remains the only player ever from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis to play in the NBA. Played three seasons (plus five games in a redshirt year) for IUPUI before the Spurs drafted him in the first round in 2008.

2. The Sixers are the seventh team Hill will play for in the last six seasons. Indiana, Utah, Sacramento, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Oklahoma City are the others.

3. Shot a career-best 46% on three-pointers last season for Milwaukee. He’s at 38.6% from deep this year.

» READ MORE: Sixers get their point guard, just not the one everyone expected

4. Grew up in Indianapolis, where as a child he’d do odd jobs for the local church so he could play in its basketball gymnasium. Last February, just before the pandemic, Tabernacle Presbyterian Church surprised him with a plaque in his honor.

5. “I didn’t have any money,” Hill said, according to the Indianapolis Star. “I used to try to take out people’s trash and sweep the floor to make ends meet.”

6. Has made more than $103 million in NBA salary. Makes $6.1 million this season and is scheduled to earn $10 million next season, according to Spotrac.com.

7. Hill’s next game will be the 800th of his NBA career. He’s come off the bench for about half those games.

8. Add Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons to an impressive list of guys to play with Hill, including LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Dwyane Wade, Tim Duncan, Khris Middleton, Tony Parker, De’Aaron Fox, Rudy Gobert, Paul George, and Andrew Bynum.

9. Find him on Twitter @George_Hill3. His Instagram, indianageorge3, is private.

» READ MORE: The balance between playing well and staying healthy

10. Was recruited by John Chaney after averaging 36.2 points his senior year at Broad Ripple High School in Indianapolis. But he turned down scholarship offers from Temple, Indiana, and Florida to play locally at IUPUI for his ailing great grandfather, Gilbert Edison.

11. “I wanted to stay close to home so he could see me play, if he ever got better,” Hill told the San Antonio Express-News shortly after the Spurs drafted him. Edison died shortly after Hill committed to IUPUI.

12. Hill has never won an NBA title, but he has played in three conference championships and was with the Cavaliers in 2018 when they were swept by the Warriors in the Finals. He’s missed the playoffs only once in his 13-year career.

13. Career average is 11.1 points in the regular season, 12.1 in 127 postseason contests.

14. Was averaging 11.8 points with a 3-1 assist-to-turnover ratio this season before suffering a thumb injury in January severe enough to require surgery.

15. Hill hasn’t played since Jan. 24, but should be available soon. “He is a guy that wants to play,” Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. “George is not a guy that takes well to sitting out of games.”