The 5 Best Games of Solomon Hill’s NBA Career – So Far
By Grant Afseth
Best Solomon Hill Game
November 8, 2014: Washington Wizards at Indiana Pacers
Solomon Hill had his NBA breakout game early this season against the Washington Wizards. He dropped a — by far — career-high 28 points. But it wasn’t just 28 points, it was an efficient 28 points, as he shot 10-for-19 from the field and 7-11 from the free-throw line.
And his contributions didn’t stop at scoring: Solomon Hill notched 6 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 steals. Equally impressive was how hard he played through 43 minutes of action as the Indiana Pacers perimeter rotation was plagued by injuries.
Indiana was on a five-game losing streak at the time, and that became six straight losses against the Wizards despite Hill’s great game. But Indiana showed resilience amid catastrophe and it originated from Solomon Hill.
The leadership and scoring punch proved that he may someday develop into a high-caliber two-way player in this league.
The Pacers seven best players were unable to play. This was the starting lineup: Donald Sloan, Solomon Hill, Chris Copeland, Luis Scola, and Roy Hibbert. But Hibbert played just 11 minutes after leaving early on with a knee bruise, leaving plenty of playing time for Ian Mahinmi (26 minutes), Damjan Rudez (26 minutes), A.J Price (18 minutes), Lavoy Allen (12 minutes) and even Shayne Whittington (8 minutes).
And Solomon Hill stepped up to be a leader in this game.
Indiana fell down big early, trailing Washington 32-14 at the end of first quarter and 54-35 at the half. But the Pacers then mounted an impressive third quarter behind 12 points in the period from Hill to trim the Wizards’ lead to just 6 points.
Ultimately, the Wizards were too good and the Pacers were too shorthanded. But Hill showed the heights of his potential by bringing his team back to make this one respectable on a night when nobody was healthy.
Solomon did a fantastic defensive job in this game, too. His assignment, Paul Pierce, shot just 2-for-13 from the field. He played physical defense and also showed quick foot speed during this game, which is likely why he ended up causing “The Truth” to have one of his worst games of the season.
These are the types of games that really show off the defensive potential that Solomon Hill provides to a team. And we have seen this on numerous occasions. But the leadership and scoring punch proved that he may someday develop into a high-caliber two-way player in this league.