"I never really bought into that but I leveraged it and monetized it and did well off of that" - Grant Hill reveals he hated the 'Next Michael Jordan' tag but still used it to benefit himself

Grant Hill came into the league when Michael Jordan’s future in the NBA looked unclear. “His Airness” was in the midst of a love affair with baseball when the highly-touted Duke superstar entered pro basketball.

The Detroit Pistons forward took the league by storm with his playmaking, scoring and leadership. He was so good and so popular that he topped the All-Star vote in his first two seasons in the NBA. It looked like the league finally had the “next Jordan.”

On "The Old Man and the Three" podcast, Hill explained to JJ Redick what it felt like to be labeled Michael Jordan’s heir apparent:

“The games, playing above the rim, they gave me that [the next Jordan]. I wasn’t ready for that. I came in with good success but I wasn’t ready to be that person right away. So I was always uncomfortable with that. My game, I like to pass, I like to be a facilitator, that was part of my DNA.”

The current USA Men’s Basketball team managing director continued:

“I didn’t approach a game thinking how can I beat a team. It was, ‘Okay, how do we do it, how do we get people involved.’ I never really bought into that but I leveraged it and monetized it and did well off of that.”

Grant Hill became the first rookie to lead the NBA in All-Star fan voting, narrowly edging out another upcoming superstar in Shaquille O'Neal. As the “next Jordan” tag became inedible in those early years, Hill’s brand also grew significantly.

The seven-time All-Star had his own shoe with Fila and was endorsing Sprite, McDonald’s, Tag Heuer and a few more. No one could fault him for building his brand despite personally feeling uncomfortable with the weighty expectations of being Jordan’s successor.

The 1994-95 Co-Rookie of the Year played his best basketball with the Pistons when he was fit. He averaged 21.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game before injuries torpedoed his NBA career.

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Grant Hill names Kobe Bryant as the best player he’s played against over Michael Jordan

Grant Hill called Kobe Bryant the best he's ever played against over Michael Jordan

While it was Grant Hill who was called the “next Jordan,” it was Kobe Bryant who was a spitting image of almost everything about Michael Jordan. The Black Mamba was built in the same way as “His Airness,” including his mentality and approach to the game.

On an episode of “All The Smoke” podcast, Hill would call “KB24” the best player he has ever played against:

"Like, I couldn't have done anything other than just prevent him [Bryant] from getting the ball. But he was the best player I played against, and I say this respectfully with Jordan – I didn't guard Jordan. [Scottie] Pippen and I matched up – but the best player that I played against, hands down, is Kobe."

Michael Jordan and Grant Hill didn’t always go head-to-head in most of their games, as most superstars do. However, when Hill faced off against Bryant in the 2010 Western Finals, he was a role player by then. His main task at the time was to make the LA Lakers superstar work hard for his shots.

Bryant torched the Phoenix Suns en route to their title run. Against Grant Hill and a plethora of guards, the “Black Mamba” averaged 33.7 points, 8.3 assists and 7.2 rebounds in that series.