Kansas Jayhawks In The NBA: Kirk Hinrich
Kirk Hinrich played for the Kansas Jayhawks during the ’99, ’00, ’01, and ’02 seasons. His highlights at KU include his two Final Four runs in ’02 and ’03 NCAA tournaments.
In ’02, the Jayhawks lost to Maryland, who ended up winning the title that year. The following season, Hinrich an Kansas made the National Championship game and lost to Carmelo Anthony and the Syracuse Orange 81-78.
His senior season at Kansas, Hinrich averaged 17.3 PPG, 3.5 APG, 3.8 RPG, and shot 48% from the field. The Associated Press named him a third team All-American after the season.
In 2009, Hinrich had his #10 jersey retired and put in the rafters of Allen Fieldhouse. His name hangs in the rafters with legends like Wilt Chamberlain, Jo Jo White, and Paul Pierce.
In the 2003 NBA Draft, Captain Kirk was selected 7th overall by the Chicago Bulls. He spent seven seasons with the Bulls before being traded to the Washington Wizards in 2010.
He didn’t stay in Washington long as he was traded the very next season to the Atlanta Hawks, where he spent two seasons.
In 2012, Kirk decided to return to the Bulls and signed a 2-year deal, which he is currently playing under. Hinrich has become somewhat of a “fan-favorite” in Chicago, as he has become the starting point guard for the Bulls in Derrick Rose‘s absence. Rose has missed a lot of games over the last two seasons, and Kirk has been there to take his place in both seasons.
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During the ’13-’14 season, Hinrich averaged 9.1 PPG, 4.0 APG, 2.8 RPG, on 40% shooting from the field. This postseason the Bulls were eliminated by the Washington Wizards in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
This summer, Kirk will become an unrestricted free agent and will be able to test his value in the free agent market. He is now 33 years-old, but still can offer a team a lot as a good backup point guard or a shooter off the bench.
Most likely, he will return to the Bulls next season and continue to be an emergency backup for Derrick Rose.
Kirk Hinrich led Kansas to two Final Fours in back-to-back seasons and Jayhawks fans shouldn’t forget about his success in Lawrence. Being only one of twenty-eight former Jayhawk players to have his jersey retired, he should be remembered as one of the best Jayhawks of all-time.
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