Kendall Gill facts for kids
Gill in 2010
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 25, 1968 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| High school | Rich Central (Olympia Fields, Illinois) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 216 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Illinois (1986–1990) |
| NBA Draft | 1990 / Round: 1 / Pick: 5th overall |
| Selected by the Charlotte Hornets | |
| Pro career | 1990–2005 |
| Career history | |
| 1990–1993 | Charlotte Hornets |
| 1993–1995 | Seattle SuperSonics |
| 1995–1996 | Charlotte Hornets |
| 1996–2001 | New Jersey Nets |
| 2001–2002 | Miami Heat |
| 2002–2003 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2003–2004 | Chicago Bulls |
| 2004–2005 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 12,914 (13.4 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 4,002 (4.1 rpg) |
| Steals | 1,519 (1.6 spg) |
Kendall Cedric Gill (born May 25, 1968) is a former professional basketball player from America. He played in the NBA for 15 seasons. Today, he works as a television basketball analyst. During his time in the NBA, he was known as “Cold World” because of his calm and focused way of playing.
Contents
Early Life and High School Basketball
Kendall Gill was born in Chicago, Illinois. He went to Rich Central High School in Olympia Fields, Illinois. In his senior year, 1986, he led his high school team to a second-place finish. This was in the IHSA class AA state boys basketball tournament.
Gill scored 54 points in the four final games of the tournament. He was also chosen for the six-player All-Tournament team. This showed he was a very talented player from a young age.
College Career at Illinois
After high school, Gill went to the University of Illinois. He played basketball for four years for the Fighting Illini. He became a starter in his last three seasons.
As a junior, Gill helped the Fighting Illini reach the 1989 Final Four. This is a huge achievement in college basketball. Their team, known as the "Flyin' Illini" was very famous. It included future NBA players like Nick Anderson and Marcus Liberty.
In his senior year, Gill was the top scorer in the Big Ten. He was also named a first-team All-American. He left Illinois as one of the top scorers in the school's history. Gill's team made it to the NCAA tournament every year he played. He also won the NCAA Slam Dunk championship in his senior year. In 2004, he was named to the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team."
Kendall Gill's NBA Journey
Kendall Gill was picked fifth overall in the 1990 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets. In his first year, the 1990–91 season, he was named to the First Team All-Rookie. He also took part in the NBA Slam-Dunk Competition.
It was a bit tough for him at first to find his place with the Hornets. This was because of other good players like Muggsy Bogues and Rex Chapman.
Breakthrough and Trades
After the 1991 season, Larry Johnson joined the Hornets. Rex Chapman left, which opened up a spot for Gill. In the 1991–92 season, Gill had a fantastic year. He averaged 20.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.
In 1993, the Hornets made it to the NBA postseason for the first time ever. After this, Gill was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics. He played alongside stars like Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp. The SuperSonics were eliminated early in the playoffs in 1994 and 1995.
Gill then returned to Charlotte for the 1995–96 season. Later that season, he was traded again to the New Jersey Nets. An injury limited him to only 11 games for the rest of that season.
Success with the Nets
From 1996 to 2001, Gill played for the New Jersey Nets. He scored a career-high 41 points in a game on January 14, 1997. He helped the team reach the 1998 playoffs.
In the 1998–99 season, he led the entire league in steals. On April 3, 1999, Gill made 11 steals in one game against the Miami Heat. This tied an NBA record for most steals in a single game. In that same game, he also had 15 points and 10 rebounds. This is a rare achievement called a "points-rebounds-steals triple-double." His final season with the Nets, the 2000–01 season, was cut short by another injury.
Later NBA Career
In his last four seasons in the NBA, Gill played for several different teams. He played for the Miami Heat in the 2001–02 season. Then he joined the Minnesota Timberwolves for the 2002–03 season. He played for his hometown team, the Chicago Bulls, in the 2003–04 season. He finished his career with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2004.
Over his 15 seasons in the NBA, Kendall Gill played in 966 games. He was part of seven different teams. He also played in 27 playoff games. He scored a total of 12,914 points, had 2,945 assists, and grabbed 4,002 rebounds.
Life Outside Basketball
Kendall Gill grew up in Matteson, Illinois. He is married to Wendy Gill, and they have two sons, Phoenix and Kota.
After his basketball career, Gill also became a professional boxer. His first boxing match was on June 25, 2005, when he was 37 years old.
Gill has also appeared on television. In 1994, he was on the Nickelodeon TV show My Brother and Me. He also appeared on the show Pros vs. Joes in 2008. In 2004, his house was shown on MTV Cribs.
On May 15, 2010, Gill sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at Wrigley Field. This is the home stadium of the Chicago Cubs baseball team.
Gill has worked as a basketball analyst for Comcast SportsNet Chicago. He provided commentary for Chicago Bulls games. He was rehired by Comcast SportsNet in late 2015. In 2017, Gill joined the BIG3 basketball league. He played for the team Power.
Kendall Gill's Achievements
High School Honors
- 1986 – IHSA State Tournament All-Tournament Team
- 1992 – Inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame as a player
College Honors
- 1989 – Kenny Battle Leadership Award Recipient
- 1989 – NCAA All-Regional Team
- 1989 – Honorable Mention All-Big Ten
- 1989 – Honorable Mention All American
- 1990 – Preseason Wooden Award Nominee
- 1990 – Illini Team Co-Captain
- 1990 – Illini MVP
- 1990 – 1st Team All-Big Ten
- 1990 – Consensus 2nd Team All American
- 1990 – University of Illinois Athlete of the Year
- 2004 – Elected to the "Illini Men's Basketball All-Century Team"
- 2008 – Honored as one of the 33 honored jerseys at the State Farm Center. This shows he is one of the most celebrated players in University of Illinois history.
- 2018 – Inducted into the Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame
NBA Honors
- 1991 – NBA Slam Dunk Contest competitor
- 1991 – NBA All-Rookie First Team
- 1999 – NBA annual steals leader
- 2018 – Charlotte Hornets 30th Anniversary Team
Images for kids
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A robot for kids.
See also
In Spanish: Kendall Gill para niños
