Joe Hillman | Indiana Hoosiers | 1987 National Championship | The Big Trip

Hardwood Heaven

Our guest today, Joe Hillman, was Robert Montgomery Knight’s first recruit west of the Mississippi, Co-Founder of TrustWealth Strategies. Member of Indiana's last Championship team in 1987 and Endorsed by Coach Knight in his Senior Day Speech as the most valuable player in the Big Ten. I am going to throw it to Josh to kick things off with Joe. 

+Tell us your basketball origin story.  

-How did you fall in love with the game?

-Any Playground Basketball Stories

-What’s it like being recruited by Bob Knight?

-Why did you end up choosing Indiana and was there anywhere else that you really considered going?

+Indiana 1987

-His recollections of being on the floor for Keith Smart’s shot.

-What people also get wrong about what it was like to be coached by Bob Knight.

-What Joe overheard Bob Knight say after the game that will stick with him forever.

-Why the genius of Bob Knight’s strategy to beat UNLV in the 1987 Final Four actually started five days before the game.

-What Joe overheard Bob Knight say after the game that will stick with him forever.

-In 1987 when Indiana was making their National championship tournament run, a radio station in Evansville Indiana (96 STO) played a song originally written by The Box Tops called “The Letter”. A group from southern Indiana called Furry Head and the Favorites re-wrote the song and titled it “Stevie Shoot a 3-Pointer”. Were you guys aware of the song? And have you heard it? (Cassie’s Question)

+Indiana Career

-The Big Trip were you on that China trip and what was it like? What did you think of the documentary?

- It is halftime of a Big Ten game against Minnesota last month and Indiana is trailing by six.

Coach Bob Knight, not a happy Hoosier, locks his team out of the locker room. It is up to Hillman, a senior with five years’ experience of dealing with such predicaments, to keep the situation under control. Indeed, the eyes of a dozen teammates show that they are counting on him to do so.

-With Mugsy Bogues the Author of Dunbar Boys said he was able to dominate a game with his leadership. Do you feel you had the ability to take over the game with leadership. 

-Who was the toughest person to guard during your time in the Big Ten there were some tough dudes at your position. Nick Anderson, Glen Rice, etc

https://19nine.com/collections/indiana-hoosiers

https://cegcreative.com/2021/02/21/the-big-trip-indianas-85-world-tour-that-led-to-ncaa-title/