The First Round Curse

He will never make it out of the first round.

He was supposed to be the "next Jordan", a player who combined unreal athleticism, a quick first step, a killer midrange J, and uncanny court vision. But it just didn't happen. He played well, sometimes even very well, and sometimes on a completely different plane altogether, but for some reason it never came together.

He was always a solid regular season performer, and even posted good numbers in the playoffs. But the first couple of playoff series came and went without triumph. Although there were other good players on his team, the defense was never good enough, and thus he was deemed not good enough. Some questioned his leadership, some questioned his all-around game, some questioned his durability.

And then came the injuries. They plagued him throughout his years with the Magic, to the point that very few believed he would actualize his potential as one of the heir/air apparents of the league. It was truly a shame. His critics picked him apart, said that he wasn't worth the insane amount of money Orlando was shelling out. His apologists said it wasn't his fault, that unforeseen circumstances and a run of bad luck had hindered him, and that it was only a matter of time before he climbed the league hierarchy. The media let him have it from almost every angle, picking apart his game and his attitude, his heart and his mind. He didn't have "it"; he didn't have the will, the fire, the passion. His game was sound, but in the superstition of the sports world he was inflicted with a fate worse than death: he was cursed.

A fateful series with the Pistons marked his last playoff endeavor with the Magic.

A new team brought new hope, but this season he finds himself in a similar distressing position, down 0-2.

But no, he is not Tracy McGrady. He is Grant Hill, and though McGrady's first round woes are much more chronicled, Hill's may be equally tragic. The NBA is a league not merely founded upon the game that is played, but upon the storylines that reside within it. That's why the fates of these two star cross'd players will be forever intertwined; they were brought together on the Magic to win in the playoffs, and the dream never materialized. Injuries plagued Hill's career in Orlando and McGrady was left to win by himself. Once T-Mac moved to his second significant career stop in Houston, his all-star caliber partner was injured yet again with foot and leg complications. Meanwhile, Hill joined the thriving Phoenix Suns, and although he has stayed healthy and played well, is coming face to face with the playoff curse yet again.

Two players facing two losses and a legacy. It may not be this year, or even next, but hopefully there will come a day when each is watching another series slip away, firmly takes his own fate into his hands and dispatches the career-long curse that has caused him so much disappointment and self-doubt.

Photo from KJ Hoops