“I’m picking all 5”: Rip Hamilton on picking 3x3 teammates from '04 Pistons, MJ’s trash talking and more (Exclusive)
At 45 years old, Rip Hamilton has been enjoying life after basketball. He serves as an NBA global ambassador, using his influence to help promote the league and the sport in different parts of the world. He is currently in Manila promoting "Republika ng NBA Month" through an NBA 3x3 event. He sat down with Sportskeeda for an exclusive interview.
Known for being a key factor in bringing a championship to the Detroit Pistons back in 2004, Hamilton was part of an unselfish starting five composed of Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince and Chauncey Billups.
The five players have remained close, even after their basketball careers came to an end, and branded their group the "Best Five Alive."
The NBA has been actively promoting 3x3 basketball, and Rip Hamilton was asked by Sportskeeda who he would bring from his "Best Five Alive" group to a 3x3 matchup. He said:
"If I had to pick three guys on my team… I got to choose Chauncey because, one, he is going to give me the ball. He is my point guard, so I will always gotta pick him," answered Hamilton.
After almost giving a complete answer on the third player he would bring, Hamilton withdrew on choosing between Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince.
"And then… man! I can’t do that! On my five? I’m picking all five. There is too many cameras here. Just know I’m taking all five with me. Regardless of what they say. Regardless of what the rules are," Hamilton added.
Furthermore, Rip expressed the importance of 3x3 basketball in the development of basketball players because he also took part in a few 3x3 tournaments before playing in the NBA.
"I’m excited to be here in the event. Why is this important to me because I grew up playing Hoop It Up which is a 3-on-3 tournament," said the three-time NBA All-Star.
Rip Hamilton shares how Michal Jordan's trash-talking molded him to become a better player
Drafted seventh overall by the Washington Wizards back in 1999 behind Elton Brand, Steve Francis, Baron Davis and Lamar Odom, Rip Hamilton finds himself teaming up with Juwan Howard and Mitch Richmond.
He struggled in his first year, when he averaged only 9.0 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists. His third year became quite interesting when Michael Jordan returned to basketball. Instead of rejoining the Chicago Bulls, he became Hamilton's Washington Wizards teammate.
Jordan, it was said, was hard on his teammates. This was explored in the Netflix documentary 'The Last Dance'. Rip Hamilton also received his part of Jordan's tough love. However, the former UConn Huskie had a different approach. He digested all the words thrown at him and soaked in being around MJ in practice for a full season.
"There was a lot of trash talking. That is part of the game. You try different angles to get the advantage over your opponent. Michael would come down and trash talk, but when he was trying to trash talk, I was trying to get information," said Hamilton.
As a 23-year-old playing in the NBA, Rip already averaged 20.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists. Even with his good numbers and becoming the team's second-leading scorer behind Jordan, Hamilton maximized his time with the six-time NBA champion, downloading information that he would need to further his career.
"I was a young kid trying to be great at this game. I was trying to get as much information as possible because I knew, at one point in time, I was going to get my time," said Hamilton.
"I wanted to get prepared. As a player and as a person, one thing I always said, I hate being unprepared. Going to a situation and not knowing but getting the opportunity to play with him, I was able to ask him as many questions as possible to when it was time, I was prepared."
During the summer of 2002, Rip Hamilton found himself traded to the Detroit Pistons, along with Hubert Davis and Bobby Simons for Jerry Stackhouse, Brian Cardinal and Ratko Varda.
Rip Hamilton would then win a championship with the Detroit Pistons in 2004 and become a three-time NBA All-Star. His jersey #32 was also retired by the organization. He also became a brand ambassador for the Jordan brand.