Roy Hibbert

From Hoopedia

**Roy Hibbert**
No. 55 - Indiana Pacers
Hibbert playing for the Pacers.
Center
Personal information
Date of birth: December 11, 1986
Place of birth: Queens, New York
Height: 7 ft 2 in	Weight: 278 lbs
Career information
College: Georgetown
NBA Draft: 2008; Round: 1 / Pick: 17th Selected by the Toronto Raptors
Debut: 2008 for the Indiana Pacers
Career history
Indiana Pacers (2008-present)
Career highlights and awards
Big East's pre-season player of the year, 2007
Roy Hibbert at NBA.com

Roy Denzil Hibbert (born December 11, 1986) is an American professional basketball player, currently playing for the NBA's Indiana Pacers.

1 Background
2 Key attributes
3 Honors
4 NBA
5 2008 NBA Draft First Round Picks

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Background

Roy Hibbert was born in Queens, New York to Roy, Sr. and Patty Hibbert. The family moved to Washington, DC when Roy was 2. Around that time, the New York Post states that his parents introduced him to basketball after they had "tried to get him to play tennis, then golf, then the piano."

Hibbert attended Georgetown Prep in North Bethesda, Maryland. The team was coached by Dwayne Bryant, who had attended Georgetown University as a varsity basketball player. Bryant introduced the still-awkward Hibbert to the GU campus. Hibbert helped make Georgetown Prep's Little Hoyas co-champions of the Interstate Athletic Conference in 2004.[1]

Hibbert was successfully recruited by Georgetown University coach Craig Esherick in 2003. However, Esherick was fired before Hibbert arrived on campus (Esherick's last season as coach went 13-15). John Thompson III was hired as the new coach. Hibbert joined the Hoyas as a "project," a player who had potential but was not yet ready for varsity.

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Key attributes

At 7'2" and 278 lbs., Hibbert plays center under Coach John Thompson III. He has evolved from a "project" to being NBA-quality.

Hibbert's greatest asset is his size--few schools have a center of comparable height and strength. He leads the NCAA in Effective Field Goal Percentage at 71%, and is 2nd in True Shooting Percentage at 72%. His slow-and-steady approach to the game meshes well with Coach Thompson's Princeton offense, which emphasizes control over explosiveness. The Georgetown Hoyas in 2007 have held many opponents to their lowest-scoring games of the season. In addition, Roy Hibbert has excellent free throw percentage, a major plus, given the frequency with which he is fouled. His tireless work ethic has brought him to the forefront of the NCAA's best centers.

Hibbert's main weakness is temperamental--he sometimes lacks the aggressiveness necessary to dominate inside. Roy is an avid Pokémon fan, and teammates frequently use the phrase "Power up, big fella", as a way of motivating Roy and getting him to play harder.

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Honors

Hibbert was named to the All-Big East Second Team in 2006 along with teammate Jeff Green. In 2007, he and Green were unanimous selections to the All-Big East First Team, with Green earning Big East player of the year honors. The two led the Hoyas to victory in the 2007 Big East Conference Championship for the first time since 1989 against the Pittsburgh Panthers; Hibbert contributed a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Before the 2007-2008 season he was named Big East's preseason player of the year.

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NBA

Hibbert was selected in the first round (17th pick overall) by the Toronto Raptors in the 2008 NBA Draft. He was then acquired by the Indiana Pacers for Jermaine O'Neal. Hibbert signed his rookie deal for about $1.2 million