"I'd just like to say I'm very happy to be here ... I'm here in Detroit where I want to be."
That was Grant Hill the day he was introduced as a Piston in 1994 after he was the 3rd pick in the 1994 NBA Draft. A four year player at Duke, where he won two national championships, Hill certainly brought high expectations with him to Detroit.
"This kid ran like he was Carl Lewis. He jumped like he was Edwin Moses jumping over hurdles," said Arnie Kander, former Pistons athletic trainer.
"Grant Hill was essentially LeBron James before LeBron James came to Cleveland," added Vincent Goodwill, former Pistons beat writer for the Detroit News.
Hill made an impact during his six years with the Pistons – sharing the Rookie of the Year award with Jason Kidd in 1995, recording a franchise-record 29 triple-doubles with the Pistons and posting averages of 21.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.3 assists a game.
"Grant Hill was such a singular special superstar. Maybe he didn't fit the Bad Boy mold, but talent-wise, no one would have turned him down and said that he couldn't fit in" said Goodwill.
"I think during two or three of his years here, he was as good a player as there was in the entire NBA," notes Pistons broadcaster George Blaha.
"He could do everything. He was a point forward before point forwards were ever talked about. He was smart, he was athletic, he was fierce, he could defend, too – which no one ever gave him credit for – but he was just a gifted, all-around player," said Chris McCosky of the Detroit News.
"I think you can tie Grant Hill to the Bad Boys in a certain way," said Blaha
On March 16, 1998, the Pistons were in Miami for a matchup with the Heat. In the second half, Alonzo Mourning – the Miami center who had developed a reputation for being an intimidator – went to set a pick on Hill. The two got tangled up, and Hill ends up taking him down and throwing him to the court.
"Alonzo Mourning is now not just some young tough center, he's an elite center. He still is perceived as a tough guy, and he and Grant Hill get into it," recalls Georg Blaha.
A few plays later, Hill has the ball and is being guarded by Dan Majerle. Hill crosses him up, and attacks the basket where Mourning meets him. What happens next is legendary.
The Pistons went on to win the game 103-90, with Hill leading the Pistons with 26 points.
"Grant Hill had his moments when he proved how tough he actually was. That wasn't necessarily how he wanted to play the game, play after play after play, but when necessary, he would go right at you," said Blaha.