Len bias biography nba draft year

t's true, what she says about the graves. I went to see them not long after I heard Lonise Bias tell an incredible story to a group of South Carolina high school students: While witnessing the burial of her son Jay, she looked down and realized she was standing on the grave of her eldest son, Leonard. I had assumed it was a rhetorical flourish, a metaphor crafted for effect by a guest speaker who was getting paid to whack some sobriety into a room of spaced-out pubescents with self-image issues. But then I drove to the cemetery, in a Maryland suburb of Washington called Suitland, and I trudged up a hill, and I found the markers, a couple of rectangles blotched with age, stamped into the dirt and rocks and tufts of grass. And it is true -- there is perhaps a foot of space between her boys. They are, quite literally, resting side by side.

The graves, tucked together like this, are a stark testimony to the complexity of Lonise Bias' grief. It is impossible to comprehend the hellish depths she has plumbed, and it is equally difficult to see how she emerged with such palpable vigor, determination and self-assurance. This is what makes her come across as a bit strange, especially to a roomful of teenagers; instead of crushing her spirit, unspeakable family tragedy has stripped her of the angst and self-doubt that paralyzes much of her audience. She opens her speeches by telling people she does not particularly care what they think of her, which permits her to bellow phrases like, "I AM THE LEGACY THAT WAS LEFT BEHIND!" and "I CAME THROUGH TO SHOW YOU THE WAY!" and somehow make them sound authoritative rather than bombastic.

"I've been termed as being ABNORMALLY ENTHUSIASTIC," she is saying. "But I am full of passion BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN YOU. I am standing here to TELL YOU that you CAN MAKE IT."

It is

Had he lived, Len Bias would have turned 60 on Saturday.

Born the same year as Michael Jordan, Bias died from cardiac arrhythmia induced by a cocaine overdose on June 19, 1986, two days after the Boston Celtics chose him second overall in the 1986 NBA draft. We will never know what level of pro player Bias would have been, or how the Celtics would have fared with him as a roster addition. Fans, rivals and media can only guess what his impact was going to be on the NBA culture of the late 1980s. But there are many knowns about the league, Boston and its pro basketball fans, our society, and the players who were Bias’ contemporaries. When we weave these existing factors together, a career and cultural path for a living Len Bias in a Boston uniform takes prospective shape.

As much as his potential statistics, evolution as a player, fit as a teammate, and eventual cultural status are objects of conjecture and debate, his era, the talents of his NBA Eastern Conference rivals, and the strength of the Los Angeles Lakers are not. If Bias had not died, the 1980s would still have been defined by the advent and growth of hip-hop, the rise of the Showtime Lakers, and Boston coming off a year in which the 66-16 Celtics won an NBA title, the New England Patriots made it to the Super Bowl, and the Red Sox played in the World Series.

Through that landscape of a changing country – and within it, a hotly contested NBA full of rising superstars – we insert Bias.

Bias’ death affected U.S. laws concerning illegal drug enforcement, the University of Maryland men’s basketball program, and national perceptions about race and the Celtics. What could he have influenced had he not died that night?

I was born in Boston, and raised in Washington since I was almost 6. On the morning of June 19, 1986, my best friend called me uncharacteristically early. “Turn on the TV,” he said.

“What happened?” I wondered.

“Just turn the TV on.” He told

American basketball player (1963–1986)

Leonard Kevin Bias (November 18, 1963 – June 19, 1986) was an American college basketball player for the Maryland Terrapins. In the last of his four years playing for Maryland, he was named a consensus first-team All-American. Two days after being selected by the Boston Celtics with the second overall pick in the 1986 NBA draft, Bias died from cardiac arrhythmia induced by a cocaine overdose. In 2021, Bias was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame.

Early life

Bias was born and raised in the Prince George's County area in Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C.. He was one of four children born to James Bias Jr. and Dr. Lonise Bias. He had a sister, Michelle, and two brothers, Eric and James III (James III was known as Jay).

Bias graduated from Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, Maryland.

College career

Bias attended the University of Maryland. As a freshman for the Terrapins, he was viewed as "raw and undisciplined." Bias ultimately developed into an All-American player. He led the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) in scoring in his junior year and was named the ACC Player of the Year. His senior season was highlighted by his performance in an overtime victory against top-ranked North Carolina, in which he scored 35 points, including seven i

Len Bias