INDIANAPOLIS — As far as the Pacers were concerned, George Hill had earned the right to determine his future.
The 36-year-old Indianapolis native is in his 15th season in the NBA and the best of them came for his hometown franchise as he played with the Pacers for five seasons, made the playoffs in four of them and reached the Eastern Conference finals twice.
As a former Broad Ripple High School and IUPUI star, he’s one of the best ambassadors to the city of Indianapolis that the Pacers have ever had. But he is headed toward the twilight of his career, having played just 35 games with the Milwaukee Bucks this season, starting zero, and the Pacers certainly don’t have a spot for him in their starting backcourt.
So when the Pacers acquired him Thursday as part of a four-way trade that moved Kevin Durant to Phoenix and brought the Bucks Jae Crowder, they offered Hill the chance to decide his next move.
“We really wanted to respect his wishes,” Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said. “At the end of the day, we had a conversation with him and his agent, Rick Carlisle and I did. We basically said, ‘Look, you have the opportunity to come in here and be a vet for our team to be someone that can teach these young kids what it’s like and what you have to do and how you have to prepare to be great in this league. Or if you want us to waive you and go on to a championship team or chase another team, it’s totally up to you. We want to respect your wishes.'”
Pritchard was surprised how quickly he got Hill’s answer.
“He immediately said, ‘I want to come back and be a part of this and I want to teach,'” Pritchard said.
Hill saw it as an easy decision. Hill has played for seven other franchises and is leaving the Bucks after his second stint in Milwaukee, but home is home and Hill has maintained his connection with the Indianapolis community since he was traded to Utah in July of 2016.
“Looking at things bigger than basketball, like I said, it’s a place that I always wanted to be,” Hill said Friday. “I don’t think I ever (wanted) to leave when I got traded out of here. … I just think it’s a great opportunity. I think it’s a great situation. But, you know, puts me close to family and friends in a city that I love.”
The Pacers are thrilled he said yes from the front office on down. Center Myles Turner is the only member of the Pacers who was on the team at any point in Hill’s previous stint, and Turner was a rookie when Hill was in his last year with Indiana.
“He was my OG when I first got to the league, man,” Turner said. “And I think he’s going to be really good for this locker room. He fills a much needed void for us as far as a veteran voice and what not. I’m glad to have him back. He was one of the vets that treated me right.”
Hill has other former teammates on the roster. He played with Buddy Hield in Sacramento, but his reputation extends to players who have never actually been his teammate.
“There isn’t enough said about George,” point guard T.J. McConnell said. “He’s one of the great human beings in this league. Great person, great teammate, and he’s played at a high level for a really long time and still is. I think he’s going to help every single person in this room with his experience and when his number is called, he’s the consummate professional and is going to be ready to help us in any way he can.”
It’s hard to say how much Hill’s number will be called, but even though he’s played in just 35 games this season including just one of the Bucks’ last eight games, he’s averaging more than 19 minutes in the games he does play. He’s averaging 5.0 points and 2.5 assists per game, still good at hitting his shots, distributing and taking care of the basketball and defending his position.
The Pacers have three point guards, all getting heavy minutes, in All-Star Tyrese Haliburton, rookie Andrew Nembhard and the 30-year-old McConnell, who is having one of the most productive all-around seasons in his NBA career. Plus they have several talented wings in Hield, Bennedict Mathurin and Chris Duarte, so there’s not necessarily an evident role for Hill off the ball.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle still sees on-court value for him, but sees even more value off the court.
“It will be meaningful to have him in our locker room for the remainder of this year as a guy that’s certainly going to be ready to play both guard positions,” Carlisle said. “But maybe even more importantly as a mentor, a guy that knows what it looks like to be part of contending teams in Indiana with the Pacers.”
Hill has been a part of contending teams in a bunch of other places as well. He wasn’t part of the Bucks’ 2020-21 title run, but he was with them in their Eastern Conference Finals run in 2019 and Eastern Conference Semifinals trips in 2020 and 2022. He’s been a part of 13 playoff teams including the 2017-18 Cleveland Cavaliers, who reached the NBA Finals before being swept by Golden State.
He’s never hoisted an NBA championship trophy, but he said he’d be happy to have the Pacers be the last franchise he plays for. He doesn’t want to retire after this season, but whenever he retires, he’d like to do so as a Pacer. Hill’s two-year $8 million contract expires at the end of this season, but he indicated he’d be very much willing to re-sign.
“I’ve thought long and hard and I think that’s the biggest reason why I chose to stay here and not try to get out and go somewhere else,” Hill said. “I felt like I still have a lot left to offer, either on the floor or to pick the brain and being a vet. Definitely don’t want it to be kind of like a rental opportunity. And would love to stay here for some years and grow with these young guys.”
And when the time comes for him to retire, he doesn’t want to leave the Pacers. He’s not sure he’d want to coach, but he’d like to do something.
“After I’m done,” Hill said, “no matter how long it takes, I definitely would love to be a part of the organization in some way or form.”
And the Pacers would certainly be willing to respect those wishes too.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: George Hill returns to Indiana Pacers hoping it will be his last team