Fate Brings Justice Hill Back Full Circle to SEC, Arkansas

Long road has guard eyeing goals he sought when he should have been walking high school stage

Author:
Kent Smith
Publish date:
Dec 27, 2022 7:29 PM EST

In this story:

Arkansas Razorbacks

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Sometimes fate leads you back no matter which roads you travel to try to avoid it.

And for LSU guard Justice Hill, there has been no escaping it.

Hill may have been the most dedicated recruit in Arkansas history.

That is until Eric Musselman showed up.

Hill committed to the Razorbacks his freshman year while beginning his road of dominating the high school ranks at Little Rock Christian. Despite being a high 3-star and listed as the fifth best player in Arkansas, Hill had a solid offer sheet and was the only high school recruit in Mike Anderson's final class.

Hill was so dedicated to Anderson's Razorback program that he graduated early, joining the team in the middle of SEC play just because he couldn't wait to get in front of an Arkansas crowd.

But following an 18-16 season during which the Razorbacks lost in the second round of the NIT, Arkansas athletics director Hunter Yurachek stunned everyone by firing the remaining link to the golden years of the Nolan Richardson era.

In came Musselman, and before the new coach could properly utter "Wooo Pig Sooie" in a semi-respectful way, Hill proved himself a trendsetter by bolting for the transfer portal.

“I entered my name in the transfer portal to assess other basketball opportunities that may be available to me,” Hill posted on Twitter. “However, I hope to visit with the Razorback football staff here in the near future to evaluate potential football opportunities with my Hog family.”

Playing football was supposedly a legitimate option for Hill. He was the Arkansas Gatorade Player of the Year while leading LRCA to a state championship in high school.

Head football coach Chad Morris had even openly discussed the former Auburn football recruit joining the team in the spring as a scholarship player. Although, things didn't work out with Morris, allowing Hill to avoid developing a reputation as a career killer among college coaches since Morris was only employed for a few more months afterward.

So, next stop, the mountains of Utah.

Hill was well on his way to leading Salt Lake City Community College to a potential national championship when COVID stopped the NJCAA Tournament before it could even get started.

Despite averaging nearly 14 points and over four assists, three rebounds and a steal per game for the nation's No. 4 national seed, the offers that followed were all mid-majors, including, coincidentally, the Nevada team Musselman left behind a year earlier.

It was current LSU coach Matt McMahon who lured Hill away to Murray State despite having offers in more visually stunning locales.

Hill struggled slightly to adjust with the Racers, mostly at the free throw line, as his points per game fell to 5.7 and his assists drifted down to 3.6.

However, by his second year in the program, Hill raised his free throw percentage double digits and synced with KJ Williams and Tevin Brown to become one of the most dangerous trios in all of collegiate athletics.

Together they ripped through college basketball with a 31-2 record, becoming the No. 26 overall team in the NCAA tournament, just 10 spots behind eventual Elite 8 qualifier Arkansas and four behind LSU.

The trio entered the tournament averaging 48.2 points, 16.3 rebounds and nine assists per game, with Hill accounting for 13.4 points and 5.1 assists in that total.

But movement and change have been pretty much the only constants in Hill's life since his senior year in Little Rock.

So, in keeping with the theme, McMahon took the opportunity to take over one of the worst coaching situations in the history of college basketball.

LSU coach Will Wade had finally been found to be fraught with so many violations that even the Tigers' athletic administration could no longer stand by him.

In the aftermath, the locker room literally emptied as everyone bailed from the dumpster fire that was expected to follow in Baton Rouge.

However, LSU's trainwreck was Hill's golden ticket back into the SEC. With everyone gone, McMahon had to reluctantly raid his own former team, taking Williams, Hill and guard Trae Hannibal in an effort to pull together enough players to field a team.

This time Hill needed no time to adjust. He hit the ground running as an offensive juggernaut, posting double digits in five of his first six games will hovering around five assists per game along the way.

However, he has struggled offensively over the last six games while focusing primarily on his role as a distributor while being lead back to the moment fate takes over.

Wednesday night Hill will finally come full circle. He will find himself standing on a basketball court surrounded by Razorback red with Musselman nearby with an SEC championship and hopes of an NCAA tournament bid top of mind.

He finally gets to live out the dream he had as a freshman hitting the courts in Little Rock. It just won't be in the color he set out to do it in.

But that's only a minor change.

And for Justice Hill, change is just part of the game.