Derrick Hamilton (basketball)
Derrick Lamont Hamilton is a former professional basketball player. A 6'7" small forward born in Mobile, Alabama, Hamilton was a college hoops star at The University of Southern Mississippi, with the Southern Miss Golden Eagles in the late 1980s. He was drafted by the New Jersey Nets with the 2nd pick in the 3rd round of the 1988 NBA Draft, but was not signed to a contract.Pro career
Despite failing to enter the NBA, Hamilton had a successful and long career abroad. He had a notable career in the Greek League playing for Sporting, AEK Athens, Apollon Patras and Irakleio. He also played in the Spanish second division, with Proexinca CB Cartagena for two seasons and in the Israeli League with Hapoel Jerusalem, where he was nicknamed "The Glue", due to his tremendous contribution to team chemistry. Prior to that, he also played with the Israeli clubs Hapoel Holon and Hapoel Eilat. He played at the end of his career in Europe with the Russian Super League club Dynamo Moscow.
Hamilton is the cousin of former Duke basketball player Antonio Lang, who won 2 NCAA titles and had playing stints in the NBA, CBA & overseas before embarking into coaching; and is the older brother of Angelo Hamilton, who led Connors State College to the 1990 NJCAA National title & later played at University of Oklahoma before embarking on stints overseas and with the Continental Basketball Association.
