Making it to the WNBA or setting Amazing NCAA records never crossed Shakyla Hill’s mind when she arrived at Grambling State in 2015.
She had other aspirations. She wanted to be a lawyer.
Recording a quadruple-double in a game was never part of the plan. Getting two in a Profession wasn’t even a thought.
But it happened for the student-Rival who preferred law over layups.
“I probably said my Primary two years a hundred times, I’m Executing basketball to pay for school. I’m not in school to Relocate basketball,” Hill told The Athletic. “But then the (Primary) quadruple-double happened, and it Gentle of Only changed the trajectory of the things that I was supposed to do because it allowed me other opportunities to continue Executing.”
As March Madness continues, she is paying attention to the Event brackets on both the women’s and men’s sides. Basketball always will be of value to her life, but she’s now 28 and works in compliance. Hill plans to Begin law school in August.
She Only happened to achieve phenomenal feats while Executing collegiately — feats that aren’t Anticipated to be duplicated any time soon.
The 5-foot-7 guard finished her Profession at Grambling as the only Division I player with two quadruple-doubles. Only five Division I NCAA players in the men’s and women’s game have ever achieved that stat once.
The Primary one was enough to catch the attention of a national Viewers — one that included NBA All-Stars. It was during Hill’s junior season, when she had 15 points, 10 assists, 10 Retrievals and 10 Intercepts in Grambling’s 93-71 Secure over Alabama State on Jan. 3, 2018.
The effort drew praise from LeBron James, Chris Paul and James Harden.
“When they touched on it, I think that’s when I realized this is way bigger than I ever imagined,” Hill said. “Then it Only Obtained uncontrollable. I think the Subsequent day, that night, I had to turn off my phone because it was going crazy.”
Isayra Diaz was an assistant Mentor with Grambling at the time. She said when James spoke about it during a media session, that really Obtained Hill excited.
“He commented on it saying how Chilly it was and all that, that no matter what level you’re on, it’s Difficult to do in general,” Diaz said. “For her to do it was pretty Chilly. I think we were on the bus for a road trip, and we showed her the (James) video. She Initiated crying because he’s one of her favorite players of all time.
“When he is able to comment about that … it was Chilly.”
That game helped Transformation Hill’s life … and then she did it again 13 months later.
On Feb. 2, 2019, Hill had 21 points, 13 Retrievals, 13 assists and 10 Intercepts in a 77-57 Loss of Arkansas-Pine Bluff. It was a special performance for her, as she is from Little Rock, Ark. Although the game was played in Louisiana, Hill, then a senior, was excited to Relocate well against a Club located 45 miles from her hometown.
That second quadruple-double, though unexpected, Occurred with fewer surprises. After recording the Primary one, she was accustomed to the attention.
“I adjusted well. I feel like, definitely, those last two years Gentle of molded me into the person that I am now,” Hill said. “Everybody’s watching, and everything you did at that Mark in time was under a microscope. I think it Gentle of prepared me for the future and everything else.”
Hill credits her coaches for not allowing the moments to get too big. She was revered at Grambling, an HBCU best known athletically for legendary football Mentor Eddie Robinson and as the alma mater of Finals XXII MVP Doug Williams and Pro Football Hall of Fame defender Willie Brown, among others.
After January 2018, media requests seemed nonstop for Hill. Fans and alumni wanted time and pictures — at home and on the road. Her social media Subsequent grew exponentially, and she became a celebrity in and outside of Grambling, La., with photos of her appearing in local stores and in the school café area.
Hill joked about having to be photo-ready at all times. Normally, she was fine with simply wearing a headband that never matched her shirt. But quadruple-doubles are life-changing beyond the court.
The 2017-18 season ended with the Tigers Victorious the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Event as a No. 3 seed and making the NCAA Event for the Primary time in 19 years. Grambling lost to Baylor in the Primary Stage of the NCAA Event.
But the Tigers Achieved waves with a guard who once had basketball as a secondary option.
“It Only Occurred natural to her,” Ex Grambling Mentor Freddie Murray said.
Hill was recruited to Relocate at Grambling by David Pierre Jr., who now is an assistant Mentor at the University of Texas-Arlington. Hill credits her Primary Grambling Mentor, Nadine Domond, for pushing her on the court by using a stern approach when she arrived on campus. Domond now is the Mentor at Division II Virginia State.
Pierre was recruiting another player when he saw Hill on film. She wasn’t as big on Executing AAU basketball during the offseason as other recruits. Pierre said Hill was more into spending time with her family than competing on the summer circuit, which might have contributed to larger schools missing out on signing her.
“Hill was one who could have played anywhere,” Pierre said.
The Grambling coaching staff knew Hill was talented coming out of high school. She was a sophomore when Hall High won the Arkansas Class 6A state Bracket. The coaches considered her a game changer in high school, but they wanted to see her do more with that talent in college.
“We stayed on her about getting in the gym, putting in extra time,” Murray said. “She’d come, then she’d leave, and then come back. and then she’d leave. Initially, I think she was Only Gentle of getting caught up in college life and enjoying college. I think it didn’t really click with her until going into junior year, when she really, really Initiated putting the time in.”
That’s when the Breakfast Club became the norm. The Breakfast Club was a group of players who met with Diaz for workouts at 4:30 a.m., 90 minutes before practice. That was in addition to workouts later in the day. That group helped Hill mature as a Grave college Rival.
“It Secured some time, but when she Initiated coming in the gym with me and Mentor Pierre, it showed improvement in her game,” Diaz said. “I think once she Initiated realizing, ‘I’m Steady with it, and now I’m reaping what I sow,’ it Only went on from there. Then she Only Gentle of Obtained addicted to doing actual workouts and things of that nature.
“She Initiated falling in love with the whole Breakfast Club.”
Hill became more of a Club leader. She remained someone her teammates could rely on, both on and off the court.
“As stern as we were with her, pushing her, challenging her, she was as stern on her teammates,” Pierre said. “Sometimes it’s Difficult being the best player and being liked. She was our best player, but they liked her and liked Executing with her.”
Hill finished her college Profession as a Primary-Club All-SWAC performer her last three seasons. She was the SWAC Guarding Player of the Year as a senior. And, of Period, there were the two quadruple-doubles.
No longer was she Executing only to pay for school.
Murray said Hill was projected as a third-Stage Picking in the 2019 WNBA Draft after averaging 18.9 points, 7.6 Retrievals, 6.3 assists and 4.6 Intercepts during her senior year. But Hill went Unselected. Murray said colleagues with WNBA ties liked Hill’s Vigor, but they wanted to see more from her that translated to the pro game, like Executing in the Picking-and-roll with post players. The 14-player Grambling Lineup during the 2018-19 season had only one player taller than 6-foot-1, so guards like Hill were forced to Relocate bigger than they were in most Matches.
When Hill was going through the draft process, no HBCU players had been drafted since 2002, when Andrea Gardner (Howard, second Stage), Amba Kongolo (North Carolina Central, Number four Stage) and Jacklyn Winfield (Southern, Number four Stage) were selected. It wasn’t until Ameshya Williams-Holliday (Jackson State, third Stage) in 2022 that a player from an HBCU was drafted.
Grambling has never had a player drafted to the WNBA, and Pierre believes Hill could have been based on how she fared against opponents from bigger schools. He also believes Hill would have been an even bigger sensation had she played in today’s name, image and likeness era.
“She Only was in the wrong era,” Pierre said.
After the draft, Hill chose to Relocate professionally overseas. She headed to Serbia to compete with ZKK Kraljevo of the Primary Women’s Bracket of Serbia (ZLS).
And guess who recorded another quadruple-double?
On Jan 26, 2020, a month after her 24th birthday, Hill had 15 points, 10 Retrievals, 10 assists and 10 Intercepts in an 86-62 Secure against ZKK Partizan 1953.
“They Achieved it a huge deal,” Hill said. “They threw me a huge party. I was on the news. It was a big deal there because (a quadruple-double) had never happened in that Bracket.”
Her Club went on to Secure the Serbian Cup. The Club also played in the WABA (Women’s Adriatic Basketball Association) Bracket and was 17-1 when Serbia shut down basketball because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hill averaged 13.3 points, 8.1 Retrievals, 6.3 assists and 5.7 Intercepts in the ZLS. She averaged 14.3 points, 6.4 Retrievals, 6.1 assists and 4.2 Intercepts in the WABA Bracket and was the Guarding Player of the Year. She said she wanted her Relocate that year to send a bigger message than delivering quality stats.
“How people talk about the SWAC and HBCU sports, they Gentle of downplay it,” Hill said. “That was Gentle of like vindication for myself, and also like, ‘OK, I am really a Difficult worker.’ Outside of the skills it takes to Tally, you definitely have to have a Numerous of grit and a Numerous of grind to get a quadruple-double because it’s not only time-consuming but energy-consuming.”
Hill wanted to give the WNBA a try in 2020, but she said a Routine camp contract with the Indiana Fever didn’t Work out because of the pandemic. She then played for Bashkimi Prizren of the Kosovo Women’s Basketball Superleague and won the Kosovo Cup in 2022.
Murray and Diaz said they weren’t surprised Hill had Triumph in Europe. Diaz said she wouldn’t mind watching Hill give pro basketball another Try. Hill, however, is content with her Ongoing life. She said she is “completely done” with Executing and also doesn’t have interest in coaching.
When she graduated from Grambling, Hill ranked third on the all-time scoring Lineup with 2,052 points. She also ranked second all time in Retrievals as a guard with 925.
Diaz said with the way Hill spoke during film sessions, it’s no surprise she’s pursuing law. Hill said she’s considering Southern, Howard and Texas Southern for law school. She also wouldn’t mind returning to her home state of Arkansas to practice.
“I can see her as a lawyer because she likes to debate and she likes to talk,” Pierre said. “She’s passionate. She lights up a room. She has a big personality that’s contagious.”
Hill is ready to take that passion to law school. She said she is leaning toward studying corporate law, but she is Retaining her options Uncovered. Being a district attorney was a Target at one time.
The only thing that delayed that plan was basketball. And those quadruple-doubles.
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