Former NBA swingman Glen Rice dominated the 1990s as one of the great floor-spacing All-Star forwards of his day. More than practically anyone, Rice knows what it takes to win at every level in basketball.
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Rice claimed high school, college and NBA championships. When it came to the pros, he built on a still-unequaled 184-point NCAA postseason scoring masterclass at Michigan to emerge as an elite three-level NBA scorer. At 6-foot-8 and packing plenty of strength and athleticism, he proved a formidable cover — especially during his tenures with the Miami Heat, Charlotte Hornets and Los Angeles Lakers.
To this day, a long-retired Rice continues to impact the evolution of the game. He currently serves as a scout for the Heat. The three-time All-Star helped bring the game to its fans at a recent NBA activation event in Miami. He helped fete the launch of AT&T's Dunk Bus. The Dunk Bus is a special NBA immersion-on-wheels, which will hop from Miami on Jan. 30 and Feb. 1 to Los Angeles just in time for All-Star Weekend's tip-off this Friday, Feb. 13.
Rice's Basketball Legend Continues to Grow
Fans can dunk on a motorized hoop, do battle in NBA 2K clashes, chop it up with NBA greats like Rice, and more.
"What the AT&T Dunk Bus is allowing a lot of fans to do is be able to stay connected to the game," Rice says during a recent conversation with The Sporting News. "[The AT&T Dunk Bus] keeps you connected to the game and allows the fans to continue to keep enjoying the game. That's what it's all about: having an opportunity to enjoy the best game in the world."
Following one of the great collegiate runs in history with the Wolverines, Rice was selected with the No. 4 overall pick by the Heat in the 1989 NBA Draft.
"When I got here to Miami, it was the second year I believe the franchise was in existence," Rice observes. He's right. The Heat were an expansion team in 1988. "It's amazing to really look and see the journey. It's been a hard journey but at the same time, it was an organization that understood goals."
The Heat's ascent was not without growing pains. A rising young Heat squad led by Rice, Steve Smith and Brian Shaw finally broke through for its first-ever postseason appearance, eventually logging back-to-back playoff berths in 1992 and '93.
Under the tutelage of team president Pat Riley and a rotating cast of Hall of Famers, the Heat have advanced to seven NBA Finals this century. They have won three.
"They got the right pieces in here with the Miami Heat to be able to achieve that," Rice says. "Looking back, I mean, it's amazing. I feel like I was a part of it because I was a former Miami Heat player and now I'm continuing my career as an NBA scout for the Miami Heat. So to have that opportunity and still be here and watch that growth, it's amazing. And it's a blessing to be a part of it."
Long a great 3-point shooter, Rice outshot Reggie Miller of all people to claim what was then called the NBA All-Star Long Distance Shootout (and is now the catchier Three-Point Contest) while still with the Heat in 1995.
Courtesy of AT&T
Miami flipped Rice to the Hornets in 1995, where he enjoyed his best individual success. During that charmed Charlotte run, Rice was named to three straight All-Star and two consecutive All-NBA teams, while averaging 23.5 points on .469/.444/.853 shooting splits, 4.4 boards, 2.4 dimes and 1.0 swipes per. He also earned All-Star Game MVP honors in 1997.
Along with Reggie Miller, Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin, Rice quickly established himself as one of their era's best long-range sniping All-Stars. Still, the NBA was a different world then.
Intense handcheck foul calling and a new emphasis on more efficient shooting (takes at the rim and from deep) have made the game more offensively focused. Players now frequently give up decent looks in the paint to dish out to teammates for corner treys.
All that said, Rice thrived even in an era that didn't yet make full use of his gifts. He nailed a whopping 40 percent of his triple tries a game — but he took an average of just 3.9 attempts from distance across a 15-year career.
These days, sharpshooter Stephen Curry is taking 11.5 (!) attempts from 3-point land.
Courtesy of AT&T
"I'm trying to triple that," Rice tells The Sporting News of his 3-point output. "You look at the guys today, the freedom to be able to run around and not have the hand check and a lot less contact, yeah, if you give me an opportunity to get up about nine 3's a game, I'm going to make you pay, deeply.
"It would be fun, I'm telling you, it would be very interesting to see how it would turn out," Rice says. "And these guys today are doing a great job. I mean, you've got a lot more guys that are showing the capabilities of shooting from that range, and that just shows you how much the game has changed."
This writer, at least, is convinced the now-58-year-old Rice deserves to be enshrined into Springfield as a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame sooner rather than later. The Hall recognizes cumulative accomplishments that include both college and the pros. Rice was one of the signature NCAA players of the 1980s.
During his final Michigan season in 1988-89, he was named an All-American Second Teamer, the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player, and the Big Ten Player of the Year en route to the title. He continues to pace Michigan men's basketball in career points, single-season points, single-season field goals made and attempted, and single-season 3-point field goal conversion rate (51.6 percent as a senior).
Rice was the third option on the legendary 2000 NBA champion Lakers, behind only Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. He made several All-Star squads in Charlotte, and led the Hornets and Heat to playoff tilts as their best player.
In 1,000 NBA regular season bouts, Rice boasts career averages of 18.3 points (on .456/.400/.846 shooting splits), 4.4 boards and 2.1 dimes. Not too shabby.
"I hope I've done enough" to make the Hall of Fame, Rice notes. "It's not something that I, you know, wake up every day thinking about. I just put it in the hands of those who are doing the selection and let the chips fall where they fall. But we'll see. I don't know if I've done enough.. but I leave that in their control. I consider myself blessed either way."
Rice had a very strong NBA showing. Coupled with his college output, this should be enough to get him there.
"If they're counting college, yeah I should've been in it already!" Rice concurs.
Courtesy of AT&T