| CHICAGO -- Grant Hill's hard fall on his tailbone looked -- and sounded -- worse than it was.
Hill suffered a hip contusion when he fell as he jumped to
intercept a downcourt pass with about 20 seconds left in the first
half of the Detroit Pistons' game against the Chicago Bulls on
Saturday.
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| Hill |
Hill's playing status for Sunday's game, when the Pistons host
the Dallas Mavericks, will be a game-time decision.
"You hate to see that happen to any great player, and he is a
great player," Bulls coach Tim Floyd said. "You just hope it's
not a broken bone or, the way he was holding his lower back, a
vertebrae."
Hill collided in the air with Ron Artest as he tried to steal
Toni Kukoc's pass. He landed on his left foot before crashing to
the floor, landing so hard on his tailbone the smack was heard
throughout the United Center.
Hill started grimacing as soon as he hit the floor, rolling over
onto his stomach.
"I bet that hurt," Kukoc said, wincing at the thought of the
injury. "Hopefully, he can recover as soon as possible."
Hill lay on the ground for about five minutes as trainers worked
on him, with worried teammates Christian Laettner and Lindsey
Hunter standing by.
He finally rolled back over, rubbing his backside before being
helped to his feet. He walked gingerly off the court to the locker
room, drawing a standing ovation as he left.
He returned for second-half warmups, but returned to the locker
room shortly after for more treatment.
Hill scored eight points on 3-of-10 shooting before leaving the
game. | |
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