Dametri Hill
Dametri Hill | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 8, 1974 St. Petersburg, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player (former) |
| Known for | Playing center and power forward; leading scorer in Israeli Basketball Premier League; 2009 Slovak league champion |
Dametri Antonio Hill (born January 8, 1974) is a former American professional basketball athlete. Standing 6 feet 7 inches tall and weighing 290 pounds, he played both center and power forward positions. Hill competed in high school basketball at Dixie Hollins High School located in St. Petersburg, Florida, before advancing to a four-year collegiate career with the Florida Gators. As a sophomore, he helped his team reach the Final Four in the 1994 NCAA tournament and earned All-SEC honors during his senior season in 1996. Although not selected in the 1996 NBA draft, Hill launched his professional journey overseas, starting in Israel, where he led the league in scoring with an average of 22.8 points per game during his rookie season. His international tenure also included stints in France, China, Latvia, Cyprus, Portugal, and Slovakia, achieving a league championship title in 2009.
High school career
Originating from St. Petersburg, Florida, Hill attended Dixie M. Hollins High School where he was a varsity player from his freshman year onward. By his junior year, he had gained statewide recognition, topping Pinellas County with averages close to 28 points and 15 rebounds per game. His performance earned him First Team All-State honors in Class AAAA as a junior along with a selection as a Street & Smith All-American. During his senior season, Hill posted an average of 26.3 points per contest, secured a spot on the All-Southern state team, and concluded his high school career with a Pinellas County record of 2,392 total points.
College career
Hill committed to the University of Florida in April 1991 and officially signed his letter of intent in November of that year. In his freshman campaign under coach Lon Kruger, he saw limited action, averaging just 1.1 points and 0.6 rebounds over 16 appearances. The subsequent season marked a significant increase in responsibility as Hill started all 37 games, contributing an average of 12.7 points and 4.9 rebounds per game—ranking third on the team in scoring and second in rebounding.[1] He played a pivotal role in guiding Florida to the Final Four of the 1994 NCAA tournament, leading the team with 16 points and grabbing nine rebounds against Duke. Notably, during this period, Hill reduced his body weight from 351 to 286 pounds.[2]
In his junior year, Hill retained his starting position and led the squad with a .525 field goal percentage while ranking second both in scoring (13.7) and rebounding (5.9). The Gators qualified for the 1995 NCAA tournament, where Hill contributed 11 points and three rebounds in their sole matchup.[3] As captain during his senior year, he elevated his averages to 17.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game while logging a career-high average of 33 minutes per game. He was honored as SEC Player of the Week on January 29, 1996, after posting a personal best of 30 points against Tennessee, including hitting the decisive game-winning basket.[4] That season, Hill was selected for the All-SEC Second Team by both Associated Press and coaches and received MVP honors at the NABC All-Star Game.
Concluding his tenure at Florida, Hill amassed totals of 1,376 points, 580 rebounds, and played 2,771 minutes across his collegiate career. He recorded twelve double-doubles and scored ten or more points in 77 out of 110 games played. His trademark hook shot earned him the moniker "Da Meat Hook" throughout his college years.[5]
College statistics
|- | align="left" | 1992–93 | align="left" | Florida | 16 || 0 || 3.8 || .333 || .000 || .636 || 0.6 || 0.2 || 0.0 || 0.1 || 1.1 |- | align="left" | 1993–94 | align="left" | Florida | 37 || 37 || 26.2 || .513 || .000 || .657 || 4.9 || 0.6 || 0.7 || 0.1 || 12.7 |- | align="left" | 1994–95 | align="left" | Florida | 29 || 29 || 28.2 || .525 || .304 || .686 || 5.9 || 1.1 || 0.6 || 0.3 || 13.7 |- | align="left" | 1995–96 | align="left" | Florida | 28 || 28 || 33.0 || .489 || .318 || .671 || 7.8 || 0.9 || 1.1 || 0.8 || 17.6 |- | align="left" | Career | align="left" | | 110 || 94 || 25.2 || .505 || .304 || .669 || 5.3 || 0.7 || 0.7 || 0.3 || 12.5 |-
Professional career
After not being selected in the 1996 NBA draft, Hill was picked in the sixth round (65th overall) of the Continental Basketball Association draft by the Florida Beach Dogs. He launched his professional journey with Israeli squad Hapoel Tel Aviv, where he led the Israeli Basketball Premier League in scoring, averaging 22.8 points, along with 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.
In 1997, Hill moved to France's LNB Pro A to play for BCM Gravelines-Dunkerque, posting averages of 14.6 points and 5.6 rebounds across 30 contests before briefly returning to Hapoel Tel Aviv for the 1998–99 season, where he recorded averages of 18.2 points and 6.5 rebounds.
During the 1999–2000 season, Hill competed in the CBA with the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the United States, scoring an average of 13.5 points and grabbing 4.9 rebounds during the regular season, then improving to a playoff average of 15 points per game.
He then signed with the Tampa Bay ThunderDawgs for the ABA's first season (2000–01), subsequently joining China's Shenzhen Yikang for their only campaign in the Chinese Basketball Association during the 2001–02 season.
Hill returned to France in 2002, playing for Orléans Loiret Basket in LNB Pro B, France’s second division, where he posted solid stats with averages of 17.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.
In Latvia’s top league during the 2003–04 season, Hill played for BK Skonto, leading the league in scoring at over 21 points per game and ranking second in the FIBA Europe League with an impressive average of 20.2 points, earning him a spot at the FIBA EuroCup All-Star Day.
Following seasons saw Hill compete with Cyprus’ APOEL and Portuguese club CAB Madeira, consistently maintaining scoring averages exceeding 20 points per game.
From 2006 onward, Hill participated in Slovakia’s premier league with MBK SPU Nitra, where he ranked fourth in scoring (19.3 points) and third in rebounds (8.2) during one season, culminating in a league championship in 2009; he scored 17 points in the final and was named to the All-Star team.
Hill wrapped up his professional tenure with Astrum Levice, contributing an average of 10.5 points and four rebounds per game during his final season, showcasing steady performance across various international leagues throughout his career.
External links
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- 1974 births
- Living people
- American expatriate basketball players in China
- American expatriate basketball players in Cyprus
- American expatriate basketball players in France
- American expatriate basketball players in Israel
- American expatriate basketball players in Latvia
- American expatriate basketball players in Portugal
- American expatriate basketball players in Slovakia
- American men's basketball athletes
- APOEL B.C. athletes
- Basketball competitors from St. Petersburg, Florida
- BCM Gravelines athletes
- CAB Madeira athletes
- Florida Gators men's basketball team members
- Hapoel Tel Aviv B.C. athletes
- Israeli Basketball Premier League participants
- Orléans Loiret Basket athletes
- Sioux Falls Skyforce (CBA) athletes
- Tampa Bay ThunderDawgs athletes
- Basketball centers
- Power forwards (basketball)
- Dixie Hollins High School graduates
- 21st-century African-American sports figures
- 20th-century African-American sports figures
- 20th-century American sports figures
- 21st-century American sports figures
- Sioux Falls Skyforce (CBA) players