NBA: 1990s All-Decade third team
Third Team: G – Tim Hardaway:
1990s Resume: 10 seasons, one-time All-NBA First Team, three-time All-NBA Second Team, one-time All-NBA Third Team, five-time NBA All-Star, 19.4 PPG, 8.9 APG and 3.6 RPG, 19.2 career PER
Whenever Tim Hardaway comes up, the first thing people mention is that deadly crossover. The “UTEP Two-Step” left NBA defenders dazed and confused for years, but it takes more than a dynamic go-to move to make this list. As the floor general of the “Run TMC” Golden State Warriors, Hardaway liked to get up and down the floor, and with Chris Mullin and Mitch Richmond on the wings, something good was almost always bound to happen when he pushed the tempo.
After the Dubs foolishly traded away Richmond to the Sacramento Kings only three seasons later, the Warriors’ popularity as an up-and-coming playoff team fell off the map. Hardaway was traded to the Miami Heat after a few knee injuries, but his strong play continued in South Beach and his reputation as a clutch performer continued to grow. He never won a title, but Hardaway was one of the most entertaining point guards to watch in the 90s.
For example, in Game 7 of the 1997 Eastern Conference Semifinals, Tim Hardaway absolutely lit up the New York Knicks for 38 points, seven assists, five steals and six three-pointers. Remember that thing about Tim Hardaway being clutch? Not many players in NBA history would’ve had the cojones to take the kind of dagger shots Hardaway does at the sequence beginning at 4:30: