MEMPHIS – Details from the actual game remain sketchy.
Former NBA star Grant Hill doesn’t recall much about the 18 points he scored, the eight rebounds he grabbed or the four assists he dished in 33 minutes on the floor at FedExForum six years ago. He’s lost track of how Zach Randolph, Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo combined for 86 points in the Grizzlies’ 125-118 victory over his Phoenix Suns in that Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration game.
But there is one vivid moment from Jan. 18, 2010 Hill insists he’ll never forget.
“We were about to warm up for either the start of the game or at halftime, I’m not sure which,” Hill recalls. “But I remember that look on Alonzo Mourning’s face when he was honored at the ceremony that year. You just knew how much something like that meant to him and how big of a moment that weekend is to the (Grizzlies’) organization and the city. Anytime you’re mentioned in the same breath, being a recipient of an award that honors the legacy of Martin Luther King, you’re in rarified air.”
Hill then exhaled.
He searched carefully for words to describe how it feels six years later to join Lisa Leslie and Steve Smith as this year’s recipients of the 12th Annual National Civil Rights Museum Sports Legacy Award. The presentation will be held at halftime of the 15th Annual MLK, Jr. Celebration Game on Sunday, when the Grizzlies host the Chicago Bulls at 8 p.m. on ESPN.
“From a player’s perspective, I’ve experienced this moment,” Hill said. “But now to be in the middle of it myself is going to be a lot of fun. It’s an honor to be a part of these events, to receive this accomplishment and to share it with two people who embody the true essence of this award.”
Draw from any era of professional basketball and it would be extremely difficult to match the world-class levels of elite talent, ultra-competitiveness, class, dignity, philanthropy and grace of this weekend’s award recipients. Hill, Smith and Leslie have earned a combined 16 All-Star appearances, six Olympic gold medals and five college or pro basketball championships. But their on-court accomplishments only begin to address what qualifies them to be associated with the civil rights and sports icons who have built on the foundation of MLK’s legacy in Memphis.
Basketball has merely served as a platform for their greater purposes.
Hill has mesmerized sports fans since he emerged as a standout freshman at Duke 25 years ago and exploded high above the rim – high-top fade and all – for that lob dunk in the Final Four that still dominates NCAA Tournament flashback highlights to this day. A mid-career foot injury prevented Hill from becoming one of the greatest players in NBA history, yet he still managed to play 18 solid seasons with the Pistons, Magic, Suns and Clippers.
But what’s impressed Smith most about Hill were the many community revitalization projects he contributed to that many never knew about on a national level. That work for Hill continues in retirement, where he recently acquired an ownership stake in the Atlanta Hawks and has also worked with President Barack Obama to promote fitness and nutrition to battle childhood obesity.
“I grew up in Detroit, so seeing what Grant meant to my hometown community when he played there, that was basically my introduction to the kind of person he is,” Smith said. “The way leaders and kids in my community in Detroit responded to him when he was playing there, and to be able to hear the stories coming from my community, I tip my hat to him. I’m still in awe. When you talk about guys you want your kids to pattern themselves after, he’s at the top of the list.”
One characteristic Hill, Leslie and Smith share has been an ability to transition from superstars on the court to community activists in their post-playing careers. Both Hill and Smith admire how seamless of a process that’s been for Leslie, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015 after being one of the seminal pillars of the WNBA as it blossomed after launching more than 20 years ago.
Leslie’s community work now includes advocating on the federal level to improve better education access for school-aged children.
“I met Lisa in 1996 when we were both on the Olympic team and she went on to obviously become one of the greatest players, period, of our generation and all time,” Hill said of Leslie, who spent 12 seasons with the L.A. Sparks. “There’s an endearing quality about her that she’s genuine and real. She can be a warrior on the court and a lady off the court. She’s so nice, gentle and at the same time so driven.”
Smith also noticed that drive and potential for greatness in Leslie at an early stage.
“I met her when she was in college at USC, and to see how she evolved as one of the faces of the WNBA … it’s not just about women’s basketball,” Smith said. “Everybody knows Lisa Leslie’s name for what she does on and off the court. That’s what I love about her, and she’s still doing it. There are human beings that my uncle and the older folks used to say, ‘They just get it.’ She gets it and does it the right way.”
Because their pro careers overlapped for many years, Leslie, Hill and Smith were able to monitor one another’s interest both inside and outside of the game. Because they are both 6-8 and versatile ball-handlers, Hill said he spent much of his high-school career hearing comparisons to Smith, who played collegiately at Michigan State and would hear comparisons of his own to fellow former Spartan Magic Johnson.
It's fostered a lineage of sorts that has seen both Hill and Smith follow in the business and philanthropic footsteps of Johnson in life after their NBA playing days.
Statistically, the most productive of Smith’s 14 years in the NBA came with the Heat and Hawks. But the statistics that matter most to him these days are the numbers of inner-city students in Detroit and Atlanta who have a pathway to college as a result of the scholarships that his foundation provides. And when Smith made a $2.5 million contribution to establish a student-athlete academic center at Michigan State named in honor of his mother, it was the largest donation from a pro athlete in school history.
“Create things that help other people that I can attach my name to is the way I was taught by my parents and my community,” Smith said. “I’ve got to see some of these plants grow, from the seeds we’ve planted with these kids. They’ve gone on to colleges, finished college and started businesses that are servicing their own communities. That’s the kind of legacy we can all be proud to contribute to.”
And it’s those countless contributions that have connected Smith, Hill and Leslie.
It’s a bond that binds them with purpose and brings them to Memphis.
And, it deservedly bridges them to our MLK Celebration legacy.
“I think we all feel the same way about each other, and they are among the few that I have ultimate respect for,” Hill said of Smith and Leslie. “They embody the characteristics of what Dr. King stood and fought for. The philanthropy, the integrity, the intellect – all of those things describe them to a tee.”
Memphis Grizzlies vs. Chicago Bulls Sunday, Jan. 15 at 8pm.
*Due to a family emergency, Lisa Leslie will not be able to attend the events & game. Former WNBA player Jennifer Azzi with accept the award on her behalf and former Sports Legacy honoree Jason Collins will take part in the symposium with Grant Hill and Steve Smith.
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