From fasting to pregame prayers: how religion shapes the NBA

Christians, Muslims and Jews have starred in the league. But even those without a faith can benefit from spiritual practice

Before every game, Bob Hill brought his teams together for a moment of silence. Hill, who coached in places like New York, Indianapolis, San Antonio and Seattle, didn’t insist on any particular message. It was simply a moment of togetherness before the start of another NBA battle. But it was in 1994 when he got to San Antonio, where David Robinson starred, that Hill was exposed to a more pointed pregame process. During a preseason game against the Knicks, Robinson, a born-again Christian, began to lead the team in prayer. Then, before the next game, the 7ft 1in center did so again. It got to be such a big part of the team’s ritual that pregame prayer became the norm – fitting, Hill says, for a roster that included Terry Cummings, an ordained minister, and Avery Johnson, who was also a born-again Christian.

“I didn’t have anything to do with it. This was all them,” says Hill, remembering the season when the Spurs went 62-20. “The culture of the team was spiritually motivated because of David, Terry and Avery. It was that way all year long.”

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