In March of 2021, former Atlanta Hawks guard Solomon Hill dove for a loose ball on the court and incidentally injured the ankle of Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James.
Apparently some Lakers fans still resent Hill for the damage he did to James, and ultimately, for affecting the trajectory of the Lakers’ 2020-21 season.
can’t do anything about your money, i don’t sports gamble, but i can say I have nothing but respect and admiration for mr. james. i saw some money on the floor and went for it, was taught “first to the floor wins”. if i didn’t have that mentality defensively, id prolly be you.
— solomon hill (@solohill) March 8, 2023
James went on to miss several weeks after the injury. Without James, the Lakers struggled to stay above water and wound up with the seventh seed in the Western Conference. They eventually lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs in 2021.
The fan that engaged Hill on Twitter is clearly still a bit salty about the incident, and Hill seems to still be defending his actions as he claims all he was doing was going for the ball.
The University of Arizona product has never been the most gifted athlete or scorer. In his nine NBA seasons, Hill was always known as a tenacious defender and a “hustle guy.” He made his money by jumping for loose balls and trying to physically outwork opponents.
The tough pill to swallow for Lakers fans is that James is still dealing with injury issues with that same foot/ankle in 2023. The all-time NBA scoring leader is currently out of action while rehabbing his foot. Unfortunately for the Lakers, James may miss more than three weeks while he recovers from the injury.
There’s certainly no hard evidence to suggest his ankle injury involving Hill in 2021 had any lasting effect on the overall health of James’ ankle/foot. However, since that incident, James has had a great deal of injury issues involving his foot or ankle.
Hill has always maintained that the injury to James was a genuine accident and that he’s not a dirty player by any means. In fact, he initially took to Twitter to defend himself not long after the incident occured back in 2021.
would never disrespect the game and take a player out purposely… he knows that. that’s all that matters to me. praying for a speedy recovery. #riptothementionstho #moredmsthansaweetie
— solomon hill (@solohill) March 20, 2021
Hill is currently not playing for any NBA team. Meanwhile, “The King” is anxiously awaiting his return from injury to help the Lakers try to fight for a playoff spot in 2023.
