Grant Hill Going To Phoenix
According to ESPN’s Chad Ford, Grand Hill agreed to a 2-year deal which he will receive 1.8 mil during the first year and almost 2 mil in the 2nd year.
As a long time Magic fan, it has not been easy since 2000 when we landed both T-Mac and Grant Hill, a promising era for the Orlando franchise turned into misery when Hill was plagued by ankle injuries and an impatient McGrady requested to be traded.
The end of Hill’s contract meant financial freedom for the franchise, but also meant the young Magic team will lose a season veteran with high Basketball IQ. His leadeship and experience will be missed. After a brilliant 2nd half after the departure of Stevie Francis 2 years ago, Jameer Nelson failed to take the leap to become a top guard of East as many expected. As good as Nelson is, he still sometimes look for his shots first instead of running the team, that is why having an excellent ball handler like Grand Hill helps to control the tempo of the game and lower turnovers (although unfortunately Magic still suffered from too many TOs, averaging nearly 17 per game, only better than the Knicks)
The impact of this transaction, for Magic, meant possibly bigger role for J.J. Redick. The face of NCAA for the past couple years should have more minutes and responsibility to shed his image of a non-factor last season, especially since his DUI charge only set him back further. I didn’t like Redick back in his Duke days, but hopefully more meaningful minutes will keep him in his rhythm, providing the Magic two more deadly shooter in the perimeter along with the signing of Rashard Lewis. That should help the team space the court better, helping Dwight Howard in the middle, although Redick’s defense will create a liability as well.
On the other hand, Hill should enjoy the style of Phoenix Suns. As long as his body can hold together, he will be another weapon for the fast pace Sun, running next to Steve Nash, making all the good extra passes. The Suns is in good position here as well because of the short term deal will not turn themselves into the next Magic, paying big money for a hotshot bench warmer.
- Paul
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