The HillTop

by Michael Martinez

Grant Hill knows exactly where he’ll be Sunday night when the Clippers touch down in Philadelphia for the last stop of their annual Grammy trip – in front of a TV in his hotel room.

His wife, Tamia Hill, is nominated for two Grammys in R&B, and although Grant would love to be sitting next to her when her categories are announced, he knows that duty calls.

The Clippers and Lakers surrender their tenancy at Staples Center every year for the Grammy Awards, which means two weeks on the road for each team. It also means that Hill, who is playing his 17th NBA season and his first with the Clippers, will be 2,700 miles away preparing for Monday night’s against the Philadelphia 76ers.

“It always seems to conflict with the season,” Hill said. “Hopefully she’ll make another album when I retire, and hopefully it’ll get nominated so I’ll get a chance to go.”

Scheduling conflicts are familiar ground for the Hills, whose chosen careers involve considerable travel and time away from home. Not surprisingly, they have three home bases: Orlando, where Hill spent six seasons playing for the Magic and where the family set down roots; Phoenix, where they lived for five years and where their two daughters attend school; and LA, where Grant may end his career playing for the Clippers.

Life, as they both know, is sometimes spent comparing datebooks. But family comes first.

“It’s like a juggling act,” Tamia said. “Sometimes you drop the ball, and you pick it up and start where you left off. As the children get older, it becomes more difficult because now they have a schedule and things they’re doing as well. But at the end of the day, if it isn’t good for me and my family, it isn’t good for me.”

Tamia isn’t just another basketball wife. She’s an accomplished recording artist with her own independent record label, Plus One Music Group, and five albums to her credit. Her current album “Beautiful Surprise” and title song earned her nominations for best R&B album and song.

“That’s the epitome of accomplishment if you’re a recording artist,” Hill said. “It’s similar to winning a championship.”

Hill, 40, won a pair of NCAA titles at Duke, but he’s still without an NBA crown. His pro career has been riddled with injuries that have cost him all or parts of several seasons, including an ankle injury that has required several operations. A bone bruise in his right knee forced him to miss the first 10 weeks of this season.

Tamia understands her husband’s pain; together, they’ve shared their respective medical issues and grown from them. In 2003, at age 28, she learned she had multiple sclerosis.

That’s not the kind of news a person absorbs easily. But earlier that year, Hill had undergone a major surgical procedure on his left ankle. If anyone understood her pain and confusion, he did.

They went to Duke University to consult specialists. While Tamia wondered what was happening to her, Hill looked for answers.

“Grant’s a fighter,” Tamia said. “First thing he said was, ‘Explain this to us. What do we need to do?’ While my head is still spinning, I know I have someone in my corner that’s listening, taking notes and figuring out what we’re going to do to get past it.”

They relied on each other’s strength to get past their difficulties. Whatever crises they face, they know they have someone to help them through.

If anything, Hill said, it has solidified their marriage.

“When you go through tough times and you share it with someone you care for and love, it just brings you closer,” he said. “You see each other at your weakest, at your most vulnerable, and that can either tear you apart or make you stronger. We’ve certainly been through sickness and through health. We take those parts of our vows seriously.

“We grow strength from being there and seeing how each other responds to whatever adversity we’ve gone through. My injuries, my setbacks, my ordeal, I feel watching her strength and continuing with her career and being a mom and wife and friend, and not complaining, that puts things in perspective for me.”

Tamia compares her MS to the volume on a radio dial. Right now, she’s at a one. She admits to feeling fatigue every now and them, but her symptoms are generally under control.

She hasn’t slowed her pace. She completed a 30-city, 2½-month “Single Ladies” tour with R. Kelly in December, and after the Grammys, she’ll begin prepping for several shows overseas.

Last November, after a tour performance, Tamia was able to walk from the Nokia Theatre at LA Live to Staples Center to watch a Clippers game. It was the first time she had been able to sing, then watch her husband, although Hill was still sidelined by his injury.

Although Hill won’t get an opportunity to accompany his wife to the Grammys, both of them hope it will be a big night for her and a big season for the Clippers.

“Hopefully,” she said, “I can get a Grammy and he can get a ring.”

by Flan Blinebury

HOUSTON – One thousand games.

There was a time when it seemed more likely he might undergo 1,000 surgeries.

“I’m still here,” said Grant Hill, his feet soaking in a tub of ice that seemed to be melting from the smile on his face.

The fact that he’s still anywhere near an NBA court, let alone running up and down one, is an act of love and stubbornness.

Players like Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant have been fortunate to be free of major injuries and blew through their first 1,000 games like they were in the EZ-Pass lane on a highway.

For Hill, it’s been the long, bumpy road that could have made him want to pull over and get off so many times.

“Not when you can do this,” Hill said on Monday night after a 117-109 win over the Rockets gave his Clippers their 30th win of the season and kept them just behind the Thunder for the best record in the league.

This was just one layup early in the second quarter. This was just 16 minutes off the bench. This was just his third game of the season after a bruised bone in his right knee forced him out for the first three months of the schedule.

But this was also chasing that passion that’s driven Hill for as long as he can remember.

Fact is, he probably wouldn’t still have been sitting there in the visitors’ locker room inside the Toyota Center three months past his 40th birthday if everything had gone according to plan as the Duke All-American, the 1995 co-Rookie of the Year, the seven-time NBA All-Star.

Here he is trying to work himself back into game shape for an 18th season because he had so many of them (in what should have been the prime of his career) taken away by ankle and knee surgeries, by a staph infection that could have taken away his life.

“At a time like this, on a night like this, I think about the relationships, the lessons learned,” Hill said. “All the little things become more significant and those are the things I take away.”

The surgeons who kept repairing his body and the trainers and the therapists and the ballboys who did all of the things that let him continue to get back out onto the court time after time. All of the coaches, who gave him space and all of the players who gave him their embrace.

From 2000 through 2006, Hill missed 356 of a possible 492 games. That’s what makes nights like this one still special.

“It goes by so fast,” said veteran teammate Lamar Odom. “One minute you’re coming into the league as a kid ready to take on the world. Then look over there at (Grant) and you can see what it feels like to have this life slipping through your hands. You don’t ever want to let it go. It’s special.”

How fitting then that this might be a very special Clippers team, the kind that could take Hill to the one place he’s never been in the NBA from Detroit to Orlando to Phoenix — reaching out for a real shot at a championship.

“When we lost to the Lakers in the conference finals (2010) and Amar’e (Stoudemire) left, I kinda went, ‘Well, maybe it wasn’t in the cards,’ ” he said. “But Phoenix trying to rebuild might have been the best thing for me personally. I got a chance to come here.

“A lot goes into the winning. There are variables. You need the organization to assemble the talent. You need the coaching. You need the talent to recognize the opportunity that’s there and to give up a little bit of themselves as individuals, and you need lots of things to go right. You’ve got to stay healthy, you know.”

Who knows that better than Hill? He looks at the empty locker stalls a few feet away where 36-year-oldChauncey Billups is still recovering from Achilles’ tendon surgery and tendinitis in his foot, where All-Star and MVP candidate Chris Paul sat out his second straight game with a sore right knee. Hill is the second-oldest player in the league and hasn’t forgotten a year or a month or a day that it took to get here.

“I feel like after all the things that I’ve been through, it’s a reward to be on this team,” he said. “So I’ve been champing at the bit the last three months to get back out there. I’m excited, but also mad at myself for not being where I want to be. I think this team has a chance to be special.”

Grant Hill wiggles his toes in the ice.

One thousand games never felt so good.

by Eric Patten

Hill joins Chauncey Billups as the second Clippers player in a row to win the Mannie Jackson Basketball Human Spirit Award. Hill was honored during a presentation Sept. 6 as part of the lead up to Saturday’s Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremonies.

Clippers forward Grant Hill was selected by the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame as a 2012 recipient of the Mannie Jackson Basketball Human Spirit Award. Hill, University of Connecticut head coach Jim Calhoun, and Founder and Director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport, Dr. Richard Lapchick, received the award Sept. 6 during the events leading up to Saturday’s Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremonies.
Hill accepts his award at the Basketball Hall of Fame on September 6, 2012.
Photo: Richard Orr/Basketball Hall of Fame
According to the official Hall of Fame website, the three winners met criteria, including embracing the core values of the game through hard work, dedication, and resilience; striving to continuously improve the community they serve; and making an ongoing commitment to others.

These qualifications extend beyond the sport of basketball as winners also must reflect the values of Harlem Globetrotters chairman Mannie Jackson’s life-long mission to overcome obstacles and challenge the status quo, while also taking responsibility for personal actions and seeking the highest standard of excellence.

“We are proud to honor three of the most deserving selections since the award was established,” Jackson said. “Having known all three personally, I admire their sustained work and contributions to both the game of basketball and their communities.” Hill, 39, was chosen based on his “positive attitude, strong work ethic, and moral code.”

More: Watch Grant Hill’s Speech

He was recently awarded the key to the city in his hometown of Reston, Virginia with proceeds from that reception going to the Medical Care for Children Partnership, which provides medical services for children in need throughout Fairfax County.

In 17 NBA seasons, the Clippers’ forward has received a number of other accolades for his civic involvement. Sporting News named Hill one the “Good Guys in Sports,” he was the 2001 Richard and Helen DeVos Community Enrichment Award winner, and with his wife, Tamia, they have led multiple foundations, including the Tamia & Grant Hill Foundation.

While a member of the Pistons, Hill appeared on behalf of Foot Locker and Fila, at a Detroit middle school to start a program designed to replace backboards in 250 area schools, and GMC Trucks sponsored his visit to the Michigan Special Olympics women’s basketball team.

“Grant has been a leader on and off the court for a long time in this league,” Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro said. “I’m happy he was recognized by the Hall of Fame for his contributions to the game. There’s nobody more deserving of an award like this.”

Beginning in 2009, finalists for the Human Spirit Award were grouped into three categories, representing the professional, amateur, and grassroots levels of basketball. Hill is the second consecutive Clippers player selected as the representative from the professional category. Guard Chauncey Billups won the award last season. “[Winning the award] says a lot about the character of Grant and Chauncey and the kind of players and people they are,” Del Negro said. “I talk all the time about doing things the right way, and these guys have done things that way their entire careers.”

President Obama recently announced that Grant Hill will be joining seven others as his delegates for the 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony in London. Alongside Mrs. Obama, Olympic medalists Brandi Chastain, Dominique Dawes, and Summer Sanders, Paralympics medalist Gabriel Diaz de Leon, and the Honorable Louis B. Susman, Grant will attend the Opening Ceremony on July 27, 2012 and meet with members of the USA Olympic team.

The delegation is being spearheaded by First Lady Michelle Obama and will promote her Let’s Move! campaign, which encourages children to be healthy and active every day. The Let’s Move! initiative is focused on eliminating childhood obesity in one generation.

As a member of the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition and a 1996 Sports and Nutrition Olympic gold medalist in Men’s Basketball, Grant is a big proponent of livelong fitness and health. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle allows him to work and play at peak performance, keeping up with his kids as well as opponents on the basketball court.

Grant is proud to serve on a delegation whose goal is to inspire children to get into the Olympic spirit by getting active and healthy. Look for him at the Opening Ceremony in London and cheer alongside him as the USA takes home the gold!

by Nick Chiles

The following excerpt is from the book, Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge by Etan Thomas with Nick Chiles (who is Editor-in-Chief of Atlanta Black Star). It is reprinted with permission of New American Library/Penguin. In this excerpt, NBA great Grant Hill talks about the incredible love and respect he has for his father, former NFL great Calvin Hill.

When I think about my dad, Calvin Hill, unconditional love and support are the first things that come to my mind. He has so much personal integrity in the way that he’s lived his life; he’s always been the perfect role model.

From a genetic standpoint, in my mannerisms and things of that nature, I obviously got a lot from him. But now that I’m an adult with my own children, I’m getting even more from him: how to interact with my children, how to deal with adversity, how to be a role model myself. I now realize how fortunate and blessed I have been over the years to have him there. When I was younger, I thought everybody had that in their lives. He would tell me there’s six inches between a pat on the back and a pat on the butt—and a parent has to do both. But the key is constant contact. Whether you’re praising or disciplining, you’re involved; you’re there. He drove me to practice; he corrected my homework; he respected my mother; he was interested in my friends and the things we were involved with at different stages of my childhood. He was always in contact. Even now, as an adult, even though obviously you cut the umbilical cord at some point, he’s still there for me. I’m thirty-nine, but I still lean on him and still look up to him. When I was younger, there was the fear of getting in trouble and being disciplined if I wasn’t conducting myself in a certain way, if I wasn’t respecting my peers, if I wasn’t taking the high road, if I wasn’t doing the right thing. But even now, as an adult, one of the things that’s helped me stay grounded is the fear of disappointing my parents. He’s still teaching me, encouraging me, and holding me accountable. Nothing’s changed—just our ages.

Part of parental love is being able to balance the constant praise and instilling of confidence in your child with teaching them right from wrong. You have to be able to tell them “No” and discipline them when necessary. I might have thought my parents were tough when I was younger, but I certainly have appreciation, admiration, and respect for their approach now.

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It was huge for me to see my father be a good husband to my mother. Somewhere I read that the best way to love kids is to love and respect their mother. My parents have been married for forty-two years. My mom has been successful in business; she has a very dominating personality. Watching the way he’s treated her over the years, how he respected her and how he never mistreated her—to her face or when she wasn’t around—the way he’s loved her, has all helped me immensely in understanding the importance of the marriage bond, the strength that comes from that, and the effect it has on kids. I know I’m the first man my daughters are ever going to love. That is a huge responsibility—it is up to me to set the standard, to be an example of the type of man they should seek when it comes time for them to find a man. That’s important to me—once I get my mind past the teenage dating years that are coming! I want my daughters to find somebody who lives up to the standard—and my standard is my father, their grandfather. If they can find somebody who treats them as my father treats my mom, I’d be more than pleased.

(more…)

By Stefan Swiat, Suns.com

A young Grant Hill gets a ride from his father, Calvin.

Growing up, Grant Hill’s father told him not to fear failure, but to fear success.

Grant’s father, Calvin, was an All-Pro football player with the Dallas Cowboys, playing 12 seasons in the NFL after graduating from Yale. Following in his father’s footsteps and into a career as a professional athlete, Grant has also tried to mirror the values his father imparted to him as a child.

“You try to do what you saw, and I was lucky enough to have a great example and a great role model,” Grant said. “As a parent, I try to do the things that he did with me and pass it along to my own children.”

Now, Grant’s daughters, Myla (nine years old) and Lael (four years old), are witnessing their father excel through his 17-year NBA career. And like Grant, they witness a person who is committed to his career, as well as his morals and values.

“You pick up on those things and you see those things not only apply in sports, but in life,” Grant said. “It applies in school work, with friends, philanthropy, whatever you value. Hard work equals success and that’s something that I’ve learned from both my parents, but it was one of the many things that I learned from my dad.”

Grant, who is a seven-time NBA All-Star, and his Grammy-nominated wife, Tamia, are more than likely to pass along their talents to their offspring. However, neither parent is putting any pressure on their daughters to pursue a career in sports or entertainment.

“My youngest (Lael) is probably more musically inclined and my oldest (Myla) is probably more into sports,” Grant said. “But it’s important for them to try to find their own way.

“Whatever they choose to do, as parents, we’ll support them and be their biggest cheerleaders and fans. We don’t want to put pressure on them to feel like they have to do either one of those to feel validated.”

However, growing up with a famous father shaped Grant’s perspective on becoming a world-renowned figure. Being around the professional sports world his entire life gave him examples to follow, as well as a model of how to deal with public success and failure.

In addition, Grant saw that his father’s career reached its conclusion after 12 years, whereas other fathers worked for a lifetime, which gave him unique insight into the life of an athlete.

“You know that it doesn’t last forever,” he said. “You know it’s a short part of your life and small part of what defines you.”

Knowing that fame is fleeting, but that character is permanent, has taught Grant to focus on the latter. It was his father’s primary lesson to him and one he will continue to pass along to his daughters.

“More people blow it when they get successful,” Grant said. “The main thing is to go forward, keep your morals, keep your values, treat people with respect and work hard. If you do that, then things will be ok.”

Whether the Hill daughters pursue a career that lands them in the limelight or not, one thing is for sure, their father and their grandfather will ensure that their success will be defined in a different way.

By Stefan Swiat, Suns.com

18 seasons have passed since Hill entered the NBA.

Few appreciate the game like those who have received a second chance. Just ask Grant Hill.

When Hill arrived in the Valley of the Sun in 2007, he was the poster boy for the oft-injured. But the seven-time All-Star gave himself a fresh start in Phoenix, and became one of the most durable players in the league the past few seasons.

From 2008-11, Hill missed a grand total of three games, playing in every single one during the 2008-09 season. However, last season the Suns’ co-captain missed 17 games due to knee issues.

Although he’ll turn 40 during next fall’s training camp, Hill has zero plans to end his career while on the mend. One of the few Suns who hasn’t skipped town this offseason, Hill has been a consistent visitor of the the team’s training and weight rooms throughout the week.

“I’m just focusing on being healthy,” the veteran small forward said. “One of the exciting things of being able to spend most of my time here this summer is that I could work with our training staff and get myself right and ready for next season.”

Most of the games that he missed came in late March, when Hill underwent minor right knee surgery to repair a medial meniscus tear. He also had surgery on that same knee last offseason, which hampered him during training camp and the beginning of the season.

Despite the surgery, the former Dukie worked diligently to return to the lineup by the end of the season, as the Suns fought for one of the final playoff positions. However, he never became completely comfortable.

“I tried to come back and I played a couple of minutes,” Hill said. “I was obviously laboring out there, and the coaches and training staff recognized that. We tried, but it just needed more time.”

With all of the medications that he took because of his surgery, Hill sought to cleanse his system by going on an all-juice diet to begin the offseason. For a week straight, he drank three-to-four quarts a day of juice that contained some sort of combination of fruits and vegetables from a blender.

The diet caused him to lose 15 pounds.

“It was good to know that I had the will power to do it,” he said. “I’m not a doctor, but I do think there are some health benefits from it.”

A day younger than Portland’s Kurt Thomas, Hill was the second-oldest player in the NBA last season. So aside from appearing in his wife Tamia’s new video, Hill isn’t shooting any new movies, making any plans to visit the White House or starting any new ventures this offseason.

He’s strictly single-minded about one thing: his health.

“I’m feeling good and I’m getting some rest,” Hill said. “I’ll be here most of the summer working and getting ready for next year.”

BY JESSICA MONTOYA COGGINS

Hill shoots and defends against players who were in diapers while he starred at Duke.

He's 39, but a strict diet keeps Grant Hill in the starting lineup for the Suns.

At 39, Grant Hill is the second oldest player* in the NBA, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at him. Or by watching SportsCenter. As starting forward for the Phoenix Suns this year he and fellow ageless wonder, 38-year-old guard Steve Nash, are representing for the well-over-30 set in a young man’s league where players like Jeremy Lin and Kevin Durant dominate the headlines. The Suns are even pushing .500 and have a shot at the playoffs, which would likely be a first for a team with two starters pushing 40.

The key to Hill’s continued success is his strict focus on diet and fitness. He’s the son of a vegetarian former NFL running back, one of just a handful of players to get their jersey retired at Duke and a 7-time NBA All-Star. He spoke with Food Republic about his diet, his rapport with Nash and his advice for younger players who think they can eat anything they want.

I know your wife’s (Grammy-nominated artist Tamia Hill) single just dropped. She has some pretty serious vocal chops. Any chance we’re going to get a duet?
I can’t sing. She’s the singer. She’s the real deal. I’m just the wannabe singer in the shower.

You’ve spoken about your consistent diet and fitness regimen. Has this compressed NBA schedule affected your ability to stay in shape?
No, other than just being super disciplined and diligent about what I eat. I’m a big believer that certain foods affect your body, your energy and your ability to recover and perform. With the compressed season, we’ve had a lot of games within a short period of time, [so] it’s even more important to really be consistent about your diet. I’ve always done that. I think in the past during the season once in a while I might afford myself an opportunity to cheat or to have something that’s not good for [me], but during this season I’ve been very diligent about eating the right foods.

What are the biggest staples of your diet?
I try to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. [I've] been doing a lot of juices to really complement that so I can I get all the nutrients from raw fruits and vegetables. I’m a believer in eating animal protein, so I’ll have fish, chicken, lamb and I do eat red meat. I try to stay away from sugars. There’s a lot of hidden sugars in foods and drinks. I try to stay away from processed foods. As a rule of thumb, if it was here a million years ago, then I tend to eat it. If it wasn’t, then I try to stay away from it.

Do you ever cheat on your diet?
We used to have a thing on the plane where if we had a road win, we’d get a cookie because they had cookies on the plane. I haven’t really done that his year. At my daughter’s birthday I had a piece of cake and some ice cream.

“As a rule of thumb, if it was here a million years ago, then I tend to eat it.” — Grant Hill

Your teammate Steve Nash is also well-known for his diet and staying in excellent shape. What’s that dynamic like?
This year in particular I’ve been really on point with my diet and I think Steve has as well. It’s good for me and hopefully it’s good for him having someone around close in age with some of the same belief systems about diet and nutrition. I think we both understand at our age a lot goes into being able to go out there and perform, and diet and nutrition plays an important role. Long after I’m done playing I anticipate continuing to eat healthy and making smart decisions about what I put into my body. It’s not just to squeeze out another year of basketball but hopefully to be healthy for the rest of your life.

Do you ever give any advice to the rookies coming into the NBA?
I think we try to, we see how the rookies come in and we remember when we were a rookie. They see the example of the hard work, lifting and all the stuff you do to get yourself prepared to play. But there’s also the diet. When you’re 21 or 22, certain foods may or may not affect you, so it’s hard to understand why it’s important to eat healthy. I think they see two older guys having the most energy and playing a lot of minutes, so people are naturally interested. Like, what are these guys doing? Why are they able to continue to play and be active and have energy and not break down? I feel like as a veteran and a guy who’s been around I didn’t necessarily have great examples when I came in of veterans who ate healthy. So I kinda envy these guys today that have some older guys who have [this] lifestyle and eat correctly. They might not get it, but at least they have the information, and slowly and gradually over their careers they can change. Just as I have, and Steve has as well.

How did you learn to eat?
My dad was a vegetarian throughout most of his football career, and for the most part had a healthy lifestyle. It wasn’t forced upon me. As a child I probably had typical eating habits and I was extremely active.

You mentioned your father—NFL running back Calvin Hill. Did he ever offer you any advice?
I think my first couple of years as a professional I started to understand and have some discussions with him about diet and nutrition. I also started to remember the things as a child that my father did. I didn’t adopt it at the time but it left an imprint. As I became curious about eating correctly, I remembered seeing that at home with my dad.

Do you ever get a chance to cook as a family?
A little bit—my wife from time to time will cook. We have a healthy chef that will prepare meals. They prepare some healthy things for us, as adults, and for our kids. Things like turkey burgers on a gluten-free bun. And the kids, they don’t know the difference. They can still eat the burgers with maybe sweet potato fries that are air-fried.

Any restaurants in Phoenix that you frequent?
There’s a lot of really healthy restaurants in Phoenix. Andrew Weil has a restaurant called True Foods which is starting to spread—they have a couple of places in L.A. We get food from there a lot. There’s a place called Nourish, which is a vegan restaurant.

Besides basketball, you’re well known for having an extensive and serious collection of African-American art. When did you start to become interested in that?
My dad collected African-American art and still does. So as a child and really up until I left for college I was at home and I visited galleries and museums. I never really thought much of it and didn’t quite understand or appreciate it. But when I was in a position to have my own place I gravitated to the things that the art and the artists that filled our home growing up. That’s how I started to get into it. Slowly but surely I started accumulating various pieces of art and the next thing you know it’s like, Wow I have quite collection.

Hill-Laettner documentary focuses on championship seasons

Former Duke All-Americans Grant Hill and Christian Laettner are teaming up with Turner Sports to offer viewers an inside look at one of the most-storied college basketball programs. The first-of-its-kind documentary for Turner Sports, Duke 91 & 92: Back to Back will air on truTV on at 8 p.m. ET on NCAA Selection Sunday, March 11, in advance of Turner Sports’ and CBS Sports’ coverage of the 2012 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship, which airs exclusively on TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV.

An hour-long documentary, Duke 91 & 92: Back to Back will revisit 1991 and 1992, when the Blue Devils became the first school in nearly 20 years to win back-to-back national championships. Key moments featured in the film include the upset win against undefeated UNLV in the 1991 Final Four, Laettner’s buzzer-beating jump shot against Kentucky in the 1992 East Regional Final, the repeat national title victory against the “Fab Five” of Michigan and the emotional 20-year reunion that took place where it all began — Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The film offers a unique perspective of those seasons by examining the key players, a Hall of Fame coach and memorable moments from an era that helped set the stage for the school’s reign as college basketball’s most influential and successful program, on and off the court, of the past 20 years. Along with Hill and Laettner, Duke 91 & 92: Back to Back includes interviews with former Blue Devils Clay Buckley, Ron Burt, Marty Clark, Bobby Hurley, Greg Koubek and Erik Meek, filmed when they returned to Durham, N.C. in September 2011 on the eve of the Duke Hall of Fame induction of Bobby Hurley, the Most Outstanding Player of the 1992 Final Four, and coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Front: producers / directors Amy Unell and Madeleine Sackler; Back (left to right): Ron Burt, Greg Koubek, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, Clay Buckley, Erik Meek, Christian Laettner, Marty Clark and Mark Williams.

Grant’s offering a free wallpaper for fans to download. Check it out, download a copy for your desktop, iphone, and/or ipad and enjoy!

• 320 x 480 (Phone)
• 1024 x 1024 (Tablet)
• 1280 x 800
• 1440 x 900
• 1680 x 1050
• 1920 x 1080
• 2650 x 1440

Directions for Mac

• Download the wallpaper to your images folder.
• Right click or Command + click your current desktop and select “Change Desktop Background”
• Click the plus sign below the list on the left.
• Browse to the location of your images folder where the wallpaper is saved and select the folder. Although it looks like you can select an image at this point, simply click “Choose” on the bottom right.
• Now you may select the image and it will immediately take effect.
• Close the window and you’re done, enjoy your new wallpaper!

Directions for PC

• Download the file to your images folder.
• Right click your current desktop and select “Personalize”.
• At the bottom of the window that opens, click “Desktop Background”.
• In the new window, click “Browse” and select your images folder.
• Next, select the image using the check mark box on the image and click “Save Changes”.
• Close the Personalization Window and you’re all done!

Directions for iPhone

• Download through your iPhone and the image will appear in your camera roll.
• Select the image and then tap the icon in the bottom left corner of your screen that looks like a box with an arrow.
• Choose the option “Use as Wallpaper”.
• You can move and scale it if you wish, or simply tap “Set” and choose if you’d like the wallpaper to show on your Home Screen, Lock Screen, or Both!

Directions for iPad

• Much like the iPhone, download the wallpaper through your iPad and it will appear in your camera roll.
• Select the image in your camera roll and tap the icon in the top right corner that looks like a box with an arrow.
• Choose the option “Use as Wallpaper”.
• Then tap the button at the top right for “Set Home Screen” and your wallpaper is set!