Background and career
Glen Anthony Rice Sr. (born May 28, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a small forward, Rice was a three-time NBA All-Star and made 1,559 three-point field goals during his 15-year career. Rice played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines, and was selected by the Miami Heat with the fourth overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft. He won an NCAA championship in 1989 and an NBA championship in 2000. In recent years, Rice has taken up mixed martial arts fight promotion as owner of G-Force Fights based in Miami, Florida, and is an NBA scout and team ambassador for the Miami Heat. He is the father of Glen Rice Jr.
Glen Anthony Rice Sr. was born on May 28, 1967, in Jacksonville, Arkansas. He and his family moved to Benton, Arkansas when Rice was only a few months old. While they lived in Benton, Rice attended both Angie Grant elementary school and Howard Perrin elementary school. When Rice was 12, the family moved to Flint, Michigan. Rice was a star on the Flint Northwestern High School record setting 1984 and 1985 varsity basketball teams. Rice lead those teams to a combined 55-1 record and consecutive Class A Michigan state titles. After graduating high school in 1985, Rice enrolled at the University of Michigan.
Rice played college basketball for the University of Michigan Wolverines for four seasons (1985–1989), a starter for three of those seasons. He became the school's all-time leading scorer with 2,442 points. He led Michigan to the 1989 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, scoring an NCAA-record 184 points in tournament play, a record that still stands. Rice was also voted the tournament's Most Outstanding Player and was part of the Associated Press All-America second-team, after averaging 25.6 points for the season, while shooting 58% from the floor and 52% from three-point range. After Rice's junior year, he was invited to try out for the 1988 United States Olympic basketball team, but he was cut before reaching the group of 48. On February 20, 2005, Rice's No. 41 jersey was retired during a ceremony at Michigan's Crisler Arena. Rice made the cover of Sports Illustrated on April 10, 1989. In 2026, Rice was inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He became the third Wolverine to ever earn the honor, joining head coach John Beilein and Cazzie Russell. Rice continues to rank among Michigan's all-time leaders in several statistical categories, including:
1st in men's career points (2,442) 1st in single-season points (949 in the 1988–89 season) 1st in single-season field goals made (363 in the 1988–89 season) 1st in single-season field goal attempts (629 in the 1988–89 season) 1st in single-season three-point field goal percent (51.6% in the 1988–89 season) 2nd in career field goals made (1,003) 2nd in single-season three-point field goals made (99 in the 1988–89 season)
Rice started his senior season as a projected mid-first-round selection, but his stock rose due to his record-breaking performance in the NCAA Tournament, and he was selected #4 overall in the 1989 NBA draft by the Miami Heat.
The Heat was an expansion team in the NBA and was now in their second-year in need of some offensive help after finishing last in the NBA in points per game in 1988–89. Joining other young players such as Sherman Douglas and Rony Seikaly, Rice would be called upon to deliver some of the scoring load despite being a rookie. Starting in 60 games, Rice averaged 13.6 points per game his rookie season just behind Douglas and Seikaly, but the lottery-bound Heat only won 18 games. The following year only saw modest improvement for the team from 18 wins to 24 wins, but Rice started in every game he played and increased his scoring load to 17.4 points a game while leading the team in three-point field goals with 71. The 1991–92 season would prove to be a breakthrough season for Rice and the Heat, as the team improved to 38 wins and featured other young players such as Steve Smith and Brian Shaw. By now Rice had become the team's leading scorer and averaged 22.3 points a game with 155 three-point field goals (second in the league), leading the Heat to its first playoff series in which the young team was swept by the defending champion Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan. Despite this, the Heat won fewer games the following year, while Rice's scoring average slipped to 19 as the scoring load of Seikaly and Smith increased. Rice averaged 21.1 points a game in the 1993–94 season and led the Heat back into the playoffs and to their first-ever playoff game win against the Atlanta Hawks, but the Heat were unable to win the hard-fought first-round series in which the Hawks prevailed 3 games to 2. In the 1994–95 season, Rice averaged 22.3 points a game (10th in the league) and made 185 three-point shots (6th in the league). Despite not being selected to play in the annual NBA All-Star Game, Rice participated in the NBA All-Star Long Distance Shootout at the 1995 All-Star game in Phoenix, and won the contest, edging out another sharp-shooter, Reggie Miller. Later during the season in a nationally televised game against Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic he scored a career-high 56 points on 20 of 27 shots from the floor including 7 three-pointers. The 56 points were an NBA season-high for the 1994–95 season. Despite his success, the Heat was unable to make the playoffs.
