Kyle Hines’ accomplishments on the basketball court in the EuroLeague can be matched by few in the history of the sport. The New Jersey native began his international career back in 2008. At the age of 38, Hines has announced his retirement from basketball after spending the past 16 seasons playing internationally.
Legendary EuroLeague Star Announces Retirement
College Standout At UNC Greensboro
On Wednesday, Hines posted that he has retired from his basketball playing career on his Instagram. He had a heartfelt message displaying both his love for the sport and all of those that helped him throughout the journey. Here is a part of that message.
“Today I officially announce my retirement from professional basketball. A career that started in 2008, I could have never imagined that basketball would have taken me this far. When I didn’t get drafted, what I thought would be one of the biggest disappointments in my life turned out to be my biggest blessing… Coming to Europe gave me the opportunity to grow as a person, it allowed me to compete at the highest level. It allowed to become a competitor, a leader, and a champion. Off the court, it has given me the opportunity to travel the world, meet so many great people and share in some amazing moments that will last a lifetime.”
Standing at six-foot-six, Hines played his high school basketball in New Jersey. After playing as a freshman at Camden Catholic High School, he transferred to Timber Creek Regional High School where he played the next three seasons.
Once his high school days were complete, he moved on to college where he starred at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Hines joined the starting lineup right away for the Spartans. He made the All-Southern First Team in his sophomore through senior seasons. In 120 games at the collegiate level from 2004-05 until 2007-08, Hines posted averages of 18.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.5 steals, and 2.9 blocks. He is the school’s all-time leader in points (2,187), rebounds (1,047), and blocks (349). The school retired his #42 jersey after his college career was over.
Despite the productive career at UNC Greensboro, Hines went undrafted in the NBA Draft in 2008. He played in three different Summer Leagues (Charlotte Bobcats in 2008, Orlando Magic in 2009, New Orleans Pelicans in 2010), but ultimately never was offered a contract in the NBA.
Hines Was A EuroLeague Champion Four Times
As mentioned earlier, Hines accomplished a lot in his career overseas which spanned more than a decade and a half, the last 14 coming in the EuroLeague. Altogether, Hines was a part of four EuroLeague championship teams. While playing for Olymiacos in Greece, he won back-to-back EuroLeague championships in 2012 and 2013. Hines then won two more with CKSA Moscow in Russia in 2016 and 2019.
While seeing his team reach the ultimate goal four times, Hines also received accolades at the individual level. He was named the EuroLeague Best Defender three times. He won the award in 2015-16 and 2017-18 with CKSA Moscow and in 2021-22 with Olimpia Milano in Italy.
Hines spent his last season in 2023-24 with Olimpia Milano. He posted averages of 3.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.3 minutes. In 425 career EuroLeague games, Hines would average 7.9 points and 4.4 rebounds. According to BasketNews, he ranks second in EuroLeague history with 1,855 rebounds, third with 320 blocks, and 11th with 3,339 points.
