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Player Review 2015: George Hill

Age: 29

Years Pro: 7

Status: Under contract through 2016-17

Key Stats: Set his career-highs in points (16.1 per game), assists (5.1), and rebounds (4.2)

When George Hill first appeared in a regular season game, the Pacers were 9-19 and had only recently escaped the clutches of an eight-game losing streak. But as Hill's minutes gradually increased, so too did his production and impact on the Pacers' offense.

Hill, who was criticized at times last season for not playing a bigger role, seemingly transformed his game over the offseason to become not just a new George Hill, but a George Hill capable of thrusting the Pacers back into postseason contention.

I wrote extensively here about why Hill's season makes a strong case for the Most Improved Player Award, but the argument bears repeating.

With the hometown hero in the lineup, Indiana went 26-17. With him in the starting lineup, the Pacers went an eye-popping 23-13, which — if prorated to an 82-game season — would measure out to approximately a 52-30 record.

The Pacers' offensive and defensive ratings, statistics that calculate a team's points scored and allowed per 100 possessions, shifted dramatically with Hill on the floor. When in the game, the Pacers' offensive rating was 107 and their defensive rating was 99.8. Without Hill's prowess, the team's OffRtg dropped to 98, and their DefRtg jumped to 101.4; all told, a +7.1 impact that George Hill had on Indiana — by far the highest on/off differential of any Pacers player who logged more than 500 minutes this season (per NBA.com/stats).

"I like having his length at the point guard spot defensively," said Pacers head coach Frank Vogel, when asked if Hill would be playing more shooting guard or point guard next season. "And the way we put the ball in his hands a lot this year he showed he could play a lot of point guard."

But Hill's impact on the team doesn't need to quantified by advanced metrics; his contributions regularly won games for Indiana in plain sight. Against Charlotte on February 8, Hill tightrope-walked the baseline before hoisting up a game-winning floater. On February 28, he recorded the first triple-double of his career, logging 15 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-high 12 assists in a win over the Cavaliers. As if all this weren't enough already, with the season on the brink in a March 25 showdown with Washington, Hill tore past the defense en route to the game-winning layup, the last of his team-high 29 points on the night.

"I worked with one of our guys, (assistant video coordinator) Mike DiBenedetto here last summer, and I think he did a great job with me," Hill explained. "Really working out every day, working on my game. And I think I'm going to do the same thing this year, work out with him all summer and hopefully take my game from where it is now to another level."

Hill's 2014-15 campaign was more than a player raising his points per game from 10.3 to a career-high 16.1. More than upping his rebounding from 3.7 to a career-high 4.2. More than raising his assists from 3.5 to a career-high 5.1 (you get the picture). It was about George Hill proving that he could not just be a contributor to a title-contending team, but that he could be one of the most important and vital pieces of the puzzle.

"I thought he was great, I thought he was fantastic this year," said team president Larry Bird at his end-of-season presser. "He attacked. He took big shots. He made big shots. He played his heart out."

If there were any knock on his season — and it would be nitpicking at this point — it would be that his injuries early in the year kept him out of the lineup for too long. His 43 games played, which is just over half of the season, was the lowest of any season in his seven-year career. Things might have turned out differently for the Pacers had Hill not been burdened with a left knee contusion and a left groin strain, but despite not making the playoffs, his outlook for next season of one of optimism.

"You can only build on it," said Hill the day after the Pacers' season ended. "Take what this feeling feels like now, of not making the playoffs, and build on it for next year."