Bob Hansen

Personal information
Born	(1961-01-18) January 18, 1961 (age 64) Des Moines, Iowa
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school	Dowling
College	Iowa
NBA draft	1983: 3rd round, 54th overall pick
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Playing career	1983–1992
Position	Guard
Number	20
Career history
1983–1990	Utah Jazz
1990–1991	Sacramento Kings
1991–1992	Chicago Bulls
Career highlights and awards
NBA champion (1992) Iowa Sports Hall of Fame
Career statistics
Points	3,952
Rebounds	1,282
Assists	947
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference
Medals Men’s basketball Representing  United States FIBA U19 World Championship 1979 Salvador National team

Robert Louis Hansen II (also known as Bob (or Bobby) Hansen) (born January 18, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'6" guard, he played nine seasons (1983–1992) in the National Basketball Association.

Hansen attended Christ The King Elementary school and was a four year starter at West Des Moines Dowling High School in the late 1970s. As a senior, he averaged 26 points and eleven rebounds per game to lead his team to an Iowa Class 4-A boys' basketball championship in 1979. His success in high school made him a prized recruit for head coach Lute Olson and the Iowa Hawkeyes, where Hansen played a key role on the Hawkeyes team that reached the 1980 Final Four. As a senior in 1983, he was named as the Hawkeye's Most Valuable Player.

Hansen was selected by the Utah Jazz in the third round of the 1983 NBA Draft, the 54th overall pick.^[1] Hansen appeared in 55 games during his rookie season with the Jazz, averaging 2.7 points per game and 7.6 minutes per game. By the 1985-86 season, Hansen found himself a regular starter for the Jazz. He was also one of three Jazz players named NBA Player of the Week (March 6, 1986) during the season, joining teammates John Stockton and Karl Malone.^[1] Hansen's highest scoring average, 9.7 points per game, came during the 1986-87 season.^[2] During a New Year's Eve party in 1988, Hansen was involved in a scuffle with Jazz teammate Bart Kofoed, which resulted in a broken cheekbone for Hansen and Kofoed being released by the Jazz.^[3] During the 1990 All-Star weekend, Hansen participated in the three-point challenge, finishing fourth. Los Angeles Lakers guard Earvin "Magic" Johnson said Hansen's tough, hard-nosed defensive style would often get him properly prepared for the physical toll of the NBA Playoffs.^{[citation needed]} Hansen had made the NBA Playoffs every year he was with the Jazz, with the team making it as far as the Western Conference semifinals in both 1984 and 1988. On June 25, 1990, Hansen was involved in a three-team deal which involved the Jazz acquiring Jeff Malone from the Washington Bullets for Hansen, Eric Leckner and two draft picks.^[1]

To begin the 1990-91 season, Hansen suited up for the Sacramento Kings, where he would play for chiefly one season, appearing in just two games for the 1991-92 Kings before Hanssen and the Kings' 1992 second-round pick were traded for Dennis Hopson of the Chicago Bulls.^[4] In his final NBA season, and perhaps his best known, Hansen appeared in 66 regular season games, who along with Craig Hodges, served as back-up guard to Michael Jordan.^[5] Hansen, who averaged 2.5 points per contest heading into the 1992 NBA Playoffs, would have arguably his most memorable professional contribution during the 1992 NBA Finals. During Game 6, the Bulls, who held a 3-2 series lead over the Portland Trail Blazers, were trailing by 15 points after three quarters. Head coach Phil Jackson decided to pull Jordan from the game in favor of Hansen,^[6] hoping for an extra jolt to start what looked to be the final corner of a Finals looking to require seven games to determine a champion. According to longtime Bulls writer Sam Smith, Jackson may have wanted to rest his starters considering no team had ever come back from a 15-point deficit to win a NBA championship,^[7] and Hansen started the fourth quarter with a three-pointer, his only field goal of the game, and a steal off Jerome Kersey. Hansen confirmed with the defending Finals MVP Jordan whether he wanted to re-enter the game, but Jordan declined.^[6]Scottie Pippen led a 14-2 Bulls rally ^[8], who along with Hansen and fellow reserve big man Stacey King, helped the Bulls get within three points by the time Jordan was put back in the game to replace Hansen. The Bulls were able to make a come back, eventually rallying for a 97-93 victory, thus winning their second consecutive NBA championship. Hansen was the only player on the roster who had not won a ring with the Bulls during the 1991 Finals and after the Game 6 win, Jordan repeatedly stated, "I'm glad for Bobby Hansen."^[9] When Hansen gave Jordan the game ball, Jordan replied, "I told you I'd get you that ring."^[6] Hansen had logged 5 minutes of game time, while Jordan played in 43 minutes.^[10]

Having won his championship ring, Hansen retired from the NBA in 1992. Hansen now ^[when?] is a color-commentator for Iowa Hawkeyes' basketball broadcasts. He calls games with Gary Dolphin. He has also run many summer basketball camps for Chicago-area children. He was named to the Des Moines Register Iowa Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.

• Stats at basketball-reference.com
• Hansen in Iowa Sports Hall of Fame, at the Des Moines Register

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