Article by John Manenti
To a decade he had seen the US Professional Basketball League reach the lowest point in its history after the brilliant 60s characterized by the challenges between the stars Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West just to name a few, there is a sudden recovery thanks to the entry into the NBA panorama of absolute level champions such as Larry Bird, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, James Worthy, Pat Ewing, Akeem Olajuwon, Ralph Sampson e Michael Jordan able to go and enrich the park of “Super Stars” which, during the 1970s, was limited almost exclusively to only two “legends” of Basketball, ie Lew Alcindor (later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) e Julius Erving …
Here, therefore, that in this period the University Tournaments are particularly followed by the Scouts of the best franchises in the NBA, hoping for the continuation of an incredible series which, with the relative Drafts at the beginning of the yearIn the 80s, he had seen the landing in the American basketball panorama, in addition to the aforementioned, also further future “Hall of Famer” quali Sidney Moncrief, Kevin McHale, Isiah Thomas, Dominique Wilkins, Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley, Chris Mullin, Karl Malone e Joe Dumars.
One can therefore imagine how much and what the wait for the mid-June 1986 Draft scheduled at the “Felt Forumin New York, already knowing that there was a “prospectus” (as the one who considers himself something more than a simple promise is usually called in the jargon …) for many insiders capable of even overshadowing Michael’s performance “Air” Jordan, who two years earlier, in his first season among the Pros with his Chicago Bulls had won the title of “Rookie of the Year” (“Freshman of the year”) with averages of 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game…
And yet, very few remember the name of this possible parquet champion, even for the simple fact that Leonard Kevin”Len” Bias has never played in the NBAfirst victim of what was later defined as the “Cursed Draft” for the tragic destinies that have befallen most of the protagonists, but let’s go in order …
That Lan Bias could have all the credentials to break through among the Professionals are many who swear it, born on November 18, 1963 in Landover, a city of just over 25,000 inhabitants in Maryland and one of the four children of a couple without any kind of economic problems, so as to be able to carry out an appropriate course of study, first at the “Northwestern High School” of Hyattsville, to then enroll in the “University of Maryland” where however, having reached full physical maturity (2.03 m for 95kg.) ideal for his role as a small forward, he manifests behavioral aspects characterized by little desire to apply himself and indiscipline, the complete opposite of the humble and serious boy of the his childhood.
The only great passion for the young Len is basketball, where he transforms with the ball in his hand, showing characteristics that made him think he was questioning Michael Jordan’s dominance on the parquet, thanks to a jump shooting ability that both teammates and opponents were quick to swear was better than that of the legendary MJtherefore a sort of player able to anticipate the basketball of the future and the rest, what unites the two players at the time of their university career is also someone who knows about young promises, namely Mike “Coach K” (so abbreviated for the unpronounceable surname of Krzyzewski …), one who in his career won 5 NCAA titles and led the US national team to three Olympic triumphs and two world championships …
And, moreover, to support these forecasts there are also the numbers, which usually never lie, considering how, in his four years at the College, Bias being named MVP of the 1984 ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference) Tournamentin addition to the title of “ACC Player of the Year” in 1985 and 1986 and also included in the ideal quintet of the US university panorama in 1986 – his last season in College ended with an average of 23 points and 7 rebounds and a sharp 41 points scored against Duke – all the credentials, therefore, to be able to be a first choice in view of the already mentioned Draft, given that during his last year the 22-year-old Len had been followed closely by many scouts from the major NBA franchisesincluding in particular the Boston Celtics who, despite being fresh from winning the title, always aimed to strengthen the “roster” in the fiercest challenge of the period against the Philadelphia Sixers and the Los Angeles Lakers.
For former Coach and now President Manager Red Auerbach, the reports of his observer Ed Barger, who had defined Bias “an explosive and exciting type of player”, also exposing himself to the comparison with Jordan who did not appear irreverent at all, so that Auerbach, in possession of the second choice – obtained by the Seattle Supersonics in exchange for the sale of Gerald Henderson – has no qualms in bet on the wing of Maryland, after that Pat Williams, on behalf of the Sixers had focused on Brad Daugherty, center hails from North Carolina…
Many wondered why the Philadelphia GM had left the “historic rivals” of Boston the opportunity to ensure the performance of Bias, and it was Williams himself, years later, who revealed the reason, when he asked Jack McMahon, Chief of scouts, what he thought of the player, receiving a shake of the head as an answer asserting that “I don’t know, but there’s something about that guy that worries me…”, and he was damn right, unfortunately …
Doubts that, conversely, do not even remotely pass through Auerbach’s head, strengthened by the assurances received from the Maryland Coach and by having often seen Bias in his College competitions, convincing himself that in addition to his technical qualities, he combined a typical tenacity and temperament winning players, with more, compared to Jordan, a better physical structure and the possibility of covering more roles, both from outside and inside the perimeter, in short, more complete, one might say …
But there is a specter that hovers in the university world and is that of cocaine that circulates without the slightest controland there are not a few rumors that also concern the best players in view of moving to the NBA – Chris Washburn of North Carolina State and William Bedford of Memphis State above all – so much so that Auerbach, for the avoidance of doubt and in violation of the regulations in force at the time, had Bias subjected to a special test, which was passed with negative resultsso that the Celtics of the various Bird, Parish and McHale are preparing to welcome their new partner, not being able to even remotely imagine what is about to happen.
the next day, Len and his father James go to the Reebok headquarters to sign a sponsorship contract as the future star of the US Professional Basketball Panoramafor a duration of 5 years for a fee of 1.6 million dollars, to then return to the College and then, after leaving for an off-campus meeting, return at early morning of June 19, 1986, where in his room, together with his longtime friend Brian Tribble and other teammates, he starts snorting cocaine for about three hours until he falls ill around 6 am :30 which forces the intervention of the Medical Guard, who finds him unconscious and with breathing difficulties.
Attempts to revive him are in vain, including emergency transport to the nearby “Leland Memorial Hospital” of Riverdale, where at 8:55 the doctors can only ascertain his death from a cardiac arrhythmia as a result of the use of cocainewith the autopsy confirming the inexistence of other drugs or alcohol in the body of the unfortunate player …
He is also present at the funeral Red Auerbach, who confirms having planned for three years the choice of Bias when he had become eligible for the Draft and, on the occasion, gives his mother Lonise the Boston Celtics jersey bearing the name and the number 30 that his beloved son should have worn, a prospectus that an adverse fate meant that he should never tread the NBA parquet …
The only legacy that Len Bias has left is linked to the fact that, with his untimely and shocking death, the United States government has accelerated measures against drug dealingwith President Ronald Reagan signing the “Anti-Drug Abuse Act” which provides for a minimum prison sentence of 20 years up to a maximum of life imprisonment and a fine of up to 2 million dollars if the sale of drugs causes death or serious injury to a person …
Law passed into history as the “Len Bias Law”, but we are sure that poor Len would have much preferred to face Jordan in a Boston-Chicago match that should have guaranteed sparks …
But unfortunately, we will never know…