32 Derrick Hord

Derrick Hord was born Derrick Cansler Hord on September 19, 1960, in Bristol, Tennessee, to Elvira and Bobby Hord. At Tennessee High School, he scored 2,785 points in 127 games, set 42 school records and earned all-state honors three times. As a senior, he averaged 26.7 points and 13.4 rebounds while leading the Vikings to their first outright conference championship in 30 years. Hord was a Parade and McDonald’s All-American, participated in the 1978 Mini-Olympics in Colorado Springs and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame’s High School Division in April 1979. Coached by future Kentucky assistant Bob Chambers, he chose Kentucky over North Carolina, Duke and Tennessee, joining a celebrated recruiting class that included Sam Bowie, Charles Hurt, Dirk Minniefield and Tom Heitz.

As a freshman in 1979–80, Hord played in all 33 games and averaged 5.9 points and 2.5 rebounds. His size and quickness allowed him to contribute at both guard and forward, including a role in Joe B. Hall’s quick, pressing “Firehouse Five” unit. He scored a season-high 18 points against both South Carolina and Florida while helping Kentucky win 29 games. Following the season, Hord shared the 1980 Jaycees Freshman Leadership Award with Charles Hurt for leadership on and off the court.

Hord moved into the starting lineup as a sophomore, starting 21 of Kentucky’s 28 games and finishing second on the team in scoring. He reached double figures 13 times, including a season-high 24 points against Maine, and ranked third on the squad in minutes played. His ability to move between the backcourt and frontcourt made him one of Kentucky’s most versatile players.

His finest individual season came as a junior in 1981–82. Hord led Kentucky in scoring at 16.3 points per game and averaged 36.4 minutes, earning All-SEC, All-District and honorable mention All-America recognition. He averaged 18.4 points and shot 56.6 percent from the field in SEC play. Hord scored a career-high 28 points against Akron and totaled 38 points in victories over Jacksonville and Seton Hall to earn UK Invitational Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. He and Dirk Minniefield were also selected as Kentucky’s co-Most Valuable Players for the season.

As a senior, Hord averaged 8.9 points and 3.1 rebounds while helping Kentucky finish 23–8 and advance to the NCAA Tournament’s Mideast Regional final. A sprained right ankle suffered against Georgia limited him to seven minutes in the following game against Tennessee, adding another challenge to an uneven final season. Hord completed his career with 1,220 points, then the 20th-highest total in program history. Hall remembered him as one of the finest young men ever to wear Kentucky blue and a key contributor throughout all four seasons. Hord hoped fans would remember him as a team player who played hard for a program that meant a great deal to him.

Several performances demonstrated Hord’s ability to influence important games. As a freshman, he made his first start against unbeaten and third-ranked Notre Dame on national television, collecting 10 points, a game-high 11 rebounds and six assists in Kentucky’s 86–80 victory. Hord and Fred Cowan also helped hold Indiana All-American Mike Woodson to 4-of-18 shooting and no second-half points in another major victory that season. On February 12, 1983, Hord supplied one final memorable moment when his 17-foot jumper at the buzzer lifted the Wildcats to a 71–69 road victory over Auburn.

A communications major, Hord earned his bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from Kentucky in 1983. The Cleveland Cavaliers selected him with the 67th overall pick in the third round of the 1983 NBA Draft, and he later played one season of professional basketball in Japan. After returning to Lexington, he worked as a research assistant with Bloodstock Research before spending 15 years in the pharmaceutical industry and later serving as a physician recruiter for Baptist Health Lexington. Hord also provided pregame and postgame analysis for a UK basketball radio affiliate, ran for the Kentucky State Senate in 2003 and served on civic boards that included the Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State Parks Foundation and YMCA of Central Kentucky. He eventually returned to UK as a community program and research director with the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging. In 2024, Tennessee High inducted him into its inaugural Athletics Hall of Fame class.