Tip-Off How the 1984 NBA Draft Changed Basketball Forever

by Bondy, Filip

• ISBN13: 9780306816123
• ISBN10: 0306816121
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-04-22
• Publisher: Da Capo Press

Summary

The 1984 NBA draft is most remembered as the one where Michael Jordan slipped to third behind number-one pick Hakeem Olajuwon...and the immortal Sam Bowie. You could understand the Houston Rockets choosing Olajuwon, but how on earth could the Portland Trailblazers pass up Jordan for the injury-prone Bowie? For the first time, Filip Bondy pieces together the entire backstory of the draft: from Michael Jordan's indecision over whether he should declare himself eligible for the NBA draft after his junior year...to Charles Barkley's calculated attempt to avoid being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers and to improve his position at the Olympic trials...to the trades that were considered but fatefully never made.

Author Biography

Filip Bondy is a sports columnist at the New York Daily News, where he has worked since 1993. He lives in Montclair, New Jersey, with his wife.

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Flip	p. ix
The View from Chapel Hill	p. 1
Decision Time	p. 15
The Achilles Shin	p. 31
Out of Africa, Into Texas	p. 45
The Well-Rounded Recruit	p. 65
Spokane Man	p. 75
Trial by Knight	p. 83
Embracing Defeat	p. 101
Finishing the Picasso	p. 109
Liking Mike	p. 121
The Safe Pick	p. 135
The Imperfect Fit	p. 145
Sweet Sixteen	p. 155
Portland Selects Sam Bowie	p. 165
Not Twins at All	p. 181
After the Fall	p. 193
A Different Kind of Star	p. 203
Far from Eden	p. 217
Charles in Charge	p. 225
The Player's Player	p. 237
Epilogue	p. 247
Acknowledgments	p. 263
Bibliography	p. 267
Index	p. 271
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