1988 - Offseason
May 21 1988
Pacers Count Their Blessings with Lottery Win
The Indiana Pacers hit the jackpot in the National Basketball Assn. draft lottery Saturday, winning the first pick and the accompanying right to select All-American forward Danny Manning of Kansas in next month’s draft. Manning, however, won’t come cheap. Manning will reportedly seek a $35-million contract, the richest rookie deal ever.
Ron Grinker, Manning’s agent, said he plans to ask for a contract that will exceed the $33.5-million, 10-year deal that center Patrick Ewing signed with the Sacramento Kings in 1985 and the $26-million, 10-year one that center David Robinson signed with the Tampa Bay Bandits. Both contracts, however, included substantial interest-free loans. Ewing was the first choice in the 1985 draft, and Robinson was the first player selected in last year’s draft.
“The only thing I can assure you is that Danny Manning won’t consider anything less than either Ewing or Robinson got,” Grinker said from his home in Cincinnati. “Danny Manning is the most unique player to come into the NBA because he can play five positions like (Boston Celtics star) Larry Bird. Danny Manning carried a very ordinary Kansas team to a championship.”
The Pacers had comfortably the best record of any of the seven teams involved in the lottery, registering 38 wins during the season and only missed out on the playoffs by one game to Tampa. Golden State Warriors, who had the worst overall record amongst all teams in the NBA last season, were rewarded with second pick. They will be followed by two big names in the East, 1983 Champions Philadelphia 76ers and the conference champions of the last two years New York Knicks (thanks to pick acquired from Milwaukee Bucks). Phoenix Suns will pick fifth, Cleveland Cavaliers sixth and Denver Nuggets seventh when the draft takes place on June 28.
June 22 1988
NBA Champion Found Dead in Hotel Room
In a devastating turn of events, Houston Rockets basketball star Len Bias has been pronounced dead this afternoon. The 24 year old Power Forward, just three days after winning his first NBA title with the Rockets, was found collapsed in a hotel room this morning. Evidence of cocaine was found in samples taken during attempts to save Bias, according to police sources. Photos have emerged of Bias out partying in Houston last night, before he presumably returned to his hotel room where he suffered a fatal cardiac arrest.
Rockets' General Manager Ray Patterson released a short statement on behalf of the team.
"We are distraught to learn of the death of one of our own Len Bias. The city of Houston has turned from celebration to mourning today, having lost a player so instrumental in our incredible first NBA Championship last Sunday. Len was a class act, a basketball player full of talent and above all a great person, friend and teammate. We send our deepest condolences to the Bias family and Len's friends. Plans to celebrate Len's life will be announced in due course, but for now we ask for privacy for Len's family, friends and teammates. Rest in Peace Len.
Bias played two seasons in the NBA. In 1987, his first, he received Rookie of the Year after being selected as first pick in the 1986 draft by Houston. He won Sixth Man of the Year in both his NBA seasons, having served as backup to 1988 final MVP Charles Barkley. Both Houston and Bias won their first NBA Championships on Sunday, beating Tampa Bay Bandits in the finals. Bias' two seasons saw him score 3,262 points, 518 rebounds, 765 assists, 243 steals and 136 blocks in total. Given the successful first two seasons he had, the question marks over how the rest of his career might have turned out will now remain one of the biggest What Ifs in Basketball.
June 23 1988
Miami and Charlotte Expansion Draft Results Revealed
After the April announcement that franchises would be headed to Miami and Charlotte, today NBA commissioner David Stern revealed the 23 players selected between the two teams that would form the basis of their first squads. Miami's first pick was Chris Washburn, who joins from Miami's nearest rivals Tampa Bay Bandits. Charlotte, picking 2nd, selected Darryl Dawkins from New Jersey Nets. Miami picked first due to last weeks coin toss which was won by Charlotte, who then chose to have the 8th pick in this years NBA draft, with Miami picking one pick later in 9th. Both teams will play in the Eastern conference in their inaugural seasons, in the new league alignment announced recently. Miami and Charlotte take the place of Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks, who have been moved into the Western Conference to play in the Midwest division. Charlotte have been placed in the Atlantic Division alongside New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, New Jersey Nets, Washington Bullets & Philadelphia 76ers. Miami will play in the Central division, alongside Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Atlanta Hawks, Tampa Bay Bandits (moved from Atlantic to Central) and Indiana Pacers. The full expansion draft picks can be seen below.
Miami Heat:
1. Chris Washburn
2. Brad Davis
3. Lewis Lloyd
4. Dennis Rodman
5. Rod Higgins
6. Craig Hodges
7. Joe Kleine
8. Winston Garland
9. Chris Dudley
10. Doug Lee
11. Ron Grandison
12. Luis Hicks
Charlotte Hornets:
1. Darryl Dawkins
2. Craig Ehlo
3. Greg Anderson
4. Rickey Green
5. Johnny Davis
6. Frank Johnson
7. Muggsy Bogues
8. Vincent Askew
9. Chase Bullard
10. Laurence Barker
11. Greg Dreiling
June 28 1988
Manning Joins Indiana in NBA Draft
Derek Manning was selected as first pick in the 1988 NBA draft by Indiana Pacers. Manning, a 6-foot 9-inch, 230-pound forward who was selected as college basketball’s player of the year after leading Kansas to the 1988 National Collegiate Athletic Assn. title, is expected to make a major contribution to the Pacers, who only just missed out on last seasons playoffs and now can have reasonable expectations of making the postseason. They have not made it past the first round in three playoff appearances, but will hope Manning can be the star to lead them further than ever before. Center Rik Smits was chosen second by Golden State Warriors, with Charles Smith going third to Philadelphia. Before the draft got underway, a moving tribute was played to Len Bias, who died just three days after his Houston Rockets team clinched last seasons title. A video was shown, with highlights from Bias' two seasons in the NBA and words from those who had played with him. A long round of applause followed as the NBA remembered a young star taken too soon.
1988 NBA Draft 1st Round Selection
1. Derek Manning - Indiana Pacers
2. Rik Smits - Golden State Warriors
3. Charles Smith - Philadelphia 76ers
4. Rony Seikaly - New York Knicks
5. Chris Morris - Phoenix Suns
6. Mitch Raymond - Cleveland Cavaliers
7. Hersey Hawkins - Denver Nuggets
8. Rex Chapman - Charlotte Hornets
9. Tim Perry - Miami Heat
10. Willie Anderson - Seattle SuperSonics
11. Mark Bryant - Tampa Bay Bandits
12. Gary Grant - Utah Jazz
13. Jeff Grayer - Portland Trail Blazers
14. Kevin Edwards- Chicago Bulls
15. Dan Majerle - Atlanta Hawks
16. Rod Strickland - Washington Bullets
17. Brian Shaw - Detroit Pistons
18. Winny Del Negro - Dallas Mavericks
19. Will Perdue - Sacramento Kings
20. Randolph Keys - New Jersey Nets
21. Derrick Chievous - Boston Celtics
22. Tom Tolbert - Sacramento Kings
23. Steve Kerr - Los Angeles Lakers
24. Harvey Grant - New York Knicks
25. Grant Long - Houston Rockets
November 1 1988
Parish heads West to join up with old rivals Lakers, Boston Rebuilding?
Just three days before the start of the new NBA season, Los Angeles Lakers announced the arrival of the longtime Boston Celtics Center Robert Parish. Parish, 35, has spent nine years at Boston, winning the 1981 title and also finishing runner up on three other occasions. Boston suffered a mini slump last season, dropping to third in the Eastern Conference before being knocked out in the First Round of the playoffs by Washington Bullets. Parish suffered an injury that ruled him out of most of the second half of the season, leading many to speculate that Boston are trading him away whilst they can still get some value back. In return, Lakers have sent Byron Scott and their 1991 1st Round draft pick. Boston will have to hope for a dramatic drop in fortunes for the Lakers in order for the draft pick to be early on in the 1991 draft. The trade between Boston and the Lakers is one of many in a busy offseason for the NBA teams.
Notable Trades / Signings
Miami Heat sign Maurice Cheeks - Free Agency
New Jersey Nets Doc Rivers - Free Agency
Utah Jazz trade Alex English, SF, to Miami Heat for their 1989 & 1990 1st Round draft picks
Cleveland Cavaliers trade Cliff Robinson, PF, & Norm Nixon, PG, to Washington Bullets for Rod Strickland, PG, and Detlef Schrempf, SF.
Golden State Warriors trade Sleepy Floyd, PG, & Purvis Short, SF, to Phoenix Suns for Wayman Tisdale, PF, & their 1989 1st Round draft pick.
Golden State Warriors trade Buck Williams, PF, & Lester Conner, SG, to Chicago Bulls for Derrick McKey, SF, & their 89 2nd Round, 90 1st Round (Top 10 protected) & 92 1st Round draft pick.
Seattle SuperSonics trade Gus Williams, PG, & Bill Cartwright, C, to Charlotte Hornets for Darryl Dawkins, C, & their 1989 1st Round draft pick (Top 5 protected)
Denver Nuggets trade Eddie Johnson, SF, to Utah Jazz for Jon Koncak, C.
Phoenix Suns trade Larry Nance, SF, to Los Angeles Clippers for their 1991 & 1992 1st Round draft picks.
Boston Celtics trade Robert Parish , C, to Los Angeles Lakers for Byron Scott, SG, & their 1991 1st Round draft pick.
November 3 1988
1988 - 1989 Season Preview
Here at ESPN, we look ahead at the NBA season that gets underway tomorrow and see what may be in store for each of the now 25 teams. The Eastern Conference now looks very different going into the new season. Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks have both departed, heading for the Western Conference to be replaced by the two new expansion teams, Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat. The move has prompted calls by some to move the playoffs to the top 16 teams across both conferences combined, with many feeling the West is now a greatly stronger conference. Teams from the West have won each of the last five NBA titles. For now though, it will still be the top 8 in the East heading into the postseason and that should be no problem for the New York Knicks. The Knicks, back to back Eastern Conference winners, still have last seasons regular season MVP Michael Jordan as well as supporting cast Bernard King and Jack Sikma. The Knicks will be hoping for much better this time out in the playoffs, suffering a shock defeat to eventual finalists Tampa Bay Bandits. Battling it out for the Conference title with New York should be Detroit Pistons. Detroit must make the most of having the talented Isiah Thomas before it's too late, having also suffered a shock exit in the East First Round last time around, swept by Atlanta Hawks. Boston are no longer seen as the favourites in the East, but still have Larry Bird and Kevin McHale to call on and should also be up there. They are without Robert Parish this season, but have gained Byron Scott and have an ever improving Mark Price to compensate. The Nets made last years Eastern Semi Finals, and may have been slightly disappointed not to go further after being the highest seeded team to reach that stage. They've had two excellent seasons with Terry Cummings and Brad Daugherty leading the team. They've added Doc Rivers in the offseason and should be the nearest challengers to the big three in the East. Tampa Bay Bandits shocked all of basketball last season, drawing wide spread support during their underdog run all the way to the NBA finals. The Bandits, now in their second season since their switch from San Antonio, should face a much simpler job of reaching the playoffs as youngsters David Robinson, Chris Mullin and Armen Gilliam all improve. Whether they can go one better than last years sensational showing remains to be seen. Everybody's second favourite team will be fun to watch again for sure. The playoff fight this year is expected to be between Atlanta, Indiana, Washington and Philadelphia. Atlanta added Derek Harper from Dallas and Reggie Miller from the draft last season to support the excellent Dominique Wilkins. Atlanta made last years East final before being soundly beaten by the Tampa train. The often unfancied side have made the last three postseasons, and show no signs of stopping that streak this time around. Indiana barely missed out on last seasons playoffs, but may now be glad they did. Despite winning seven more games than anyone else in the draft lottery, they were awarded the number one pick. Derek Manning was the choice, and the Pacers will be hoping he can have a similar impact to that of David Robinson with Tampa last season. Washington are Basketball analysts bogey side. One glance at their roster and you'd have them as a lock to miss out on the playoffs but that has been the case the past two seasons where they've ended up at the Semi Final stage both times. Their spirit and togetherness has made up for any lack of quality, and this year they've added Norm Nixon and Cliff Robinson from Cleveland. This year no one can be surprised if the Bullets find themselves playing more than 82 games. Philadelphia 76ers are in a difficult place. Letting Moses Malone go last season was the start of a supposed rebuilding phase but the two players replacing Malone were unable to produce enough quality last season. Charles Smith should be a much needed addition at Small Forward, and if Charles Oakley and Jeff Ruland can start discovering that form they can produce then maybe Philly can return to the playoffs this time around. Miami have had a strong first offseason in the NBA. The quality in the expansion draft was low as expected, but they've been able to add Maurice Cheeks in free agency and have taken the big risk of adding 34 year old Alex English from Utah and trading away their next two first round draft picks. If English can bring his good form to Miami, then the Heat could make a surprise first season challenge for the playoffs. They may need to, because without their next two draft picks this season could be Miami's best for a while. Cleveland will be hoping the addition of two expansion teams might lift them off the bottom of the East. Miami's roster already looks stronger however, and Cleveland have trade proven quality for young prospects in acquiring Rod Strickland and Detlef Schrempf from Washington. Cleveland should still just about have enough to finish above Charlotte's new side, but that may be as good as it gets for now for the Cavaliers. Charlotte weren't able to get someone like Alex English in the offseason but they do still have their next two draft picks. Gradual improvement will be the name of the game for the Hornets over the next few years.
In the West, last years top seed and eventual NBA Champions Houston Rockets were rocked over the summer when, just three days after their game 6 win over Tampa in the NBA final, Len Bias was found dead in his hotel room. The Rockets have had an understandably quiet offseason since then, and it's unknown the effect Bias' death will have on the team. Perhaps a more modest playoff position is to be expected from the Rockets this time around. Los Angeles Lakers launched a big play to get back to the top of the pile just a few days ago. Announcing the pick up of Robert Parish, the Lakers have dramatically improved their starting roster at Center. The Lakers may only have a couple more goes at adding to the titles of Magic and Worthy, three of their starting five are now well into their thirties, but they will be confident this season with their offseason addition of Parish. Sacramento once again look well positioned with Patrick Ewing and John Stockton. The Kings again fell short in the playoffs but the team is still young and learning how to deal with the postseason pressure. Chuck Person is now in his third season and will add more quality to help take the load off of Ewing and Stockton. Dallas' roster also remains in a position to contend this year. Benoit Benjamin has developed massively and now leads the team alongside Mark Aguirre and Rolando Blackman. There is an argument that their current line up is considerably stronger than the one that secured the Championship in 1985, so why can't Dallas win Championship No 2 this time around? Behind the top 4, expect Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls and Portland Trail Blazers all to make the playoffs this season. The Clippers duo of Moses Malone and Adrian Dantley can still compete amongst the best and have had a season playing together now. The Bulls are back in the West for the first time since 1980 and added Buck Williams in the summer to ball alongside superstar Karl Malone and Center Bill Laimbeer. The Bulls have a sneaky contending roster but it does feel like they've underachieved since drafting Malone in 1985. Portland are the only team to have made the past five playoff semi finals, with Clyde Drexler leading them to every one. It would be reasonable to assume the same again this time around, although their continued drift away from the top in the regular season may continue as others strengthen. The playoff fight looks to be between Phoenix and Milwaukee this season. Phoenix have added the former Golden State duo Sleepy Floyd and Purvis Short who bring experience to an exciting young line up featuring Kevin Johnson and Chris Morris. Milwaukee, also back in the West for the first time since 1980, have struggled recently and will need Scottie Pippen and Kenny Fields to step up this season to support Sidney Moncrief. Behind these two, Denver led by Kelly Tripucka may be the best place side to launch a playoff campaign. The Nuggets have a few young players waiting to break through and this year could be the year they do so. The Jazz traded away star Alex English for what they hope will be two low numbered draft picks from Miami. Expect Utah's own draft pick to feature in next year's lottery, given the state of the current roster now without English. Golden State are in a big rebuilding period, having fallen out the playoffs straight to the bottom of the West. The Warriors let their three best players leave for two young talents in Wayman Tisdale and Derrick McKey and a plethora of draft picks. The Warriors will hope they can say the next couple of years of certain struggles will be worth it come the 90s. Seattle's strange trade decisions may finally come to haunt them this year. Losing Bill Cartwright and Gus Williams from an already weak roster means they may finally miss out on the playoffs after seven straight appearances in the off season. They do always seem to find away to make that top 8, so never say never for the SuperSonics, but it looks unlikely this time around.
Eastern Conference Prediction
1. New York Knicks
2. Detroit Pistons
3. Boston Celtics
4. New Jersey Nets
5. Tampa Bay Bandits
6. Atlanta Hawks
7. Indiana Pacers
8. Washington Bullets
9. Philadelphia 76ers
10. Miami Heat
11. Cleveland Cavaliers
12. Charlotte Hornets
Western Conference Prediction
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Sacramento Kings
3. Dallas Mavericks
4. Houston Rockets
5. Los Angeles Clippers
6. Chicago Bulls
7. Portland Trail Blazers
8. Phoenix Suns
9. Milwaukee Bucks
10. Denver Nuggets
11. Utah Jazz
12. Golden State Warriors
13. Seattle SuperSonics
Up Next: The 1988-89 Season