The 1986 NBA Draft produced an unusual mixture of stars, valuable
role players, international pioneers and tragedy. Brad Daugherty
went first overall to Cleveland, while future NBA All-Stars Mark
Price, Dennis Rodman, Kevin Duckworth and Jeff Hornacek were all
selected outside the first round.
The draft also contained two future Basketball Hall of Fame
international stars. Portland selected Arvydas Sabonis with the
24th pick and later selected Dražen Petrović with the 60th pick.
Neither immediately joined the NBA, but both eventually became
important figures in the growth of international basketball.
The draft is also remembered for Maryland star Len Bias, whom the
Boston Celtics selected second overall. Bias died two days after
the draft and never appeared in an NBA game.
All seven rounds are preserved below. Teams represent the franchises
credited with making each selection, while schools and international
clubs reflect the player's basketball background at the time of
the draft.
Brad Daugherty: Cleveland selected North Carolina
center Brad Daugherty first overall. He became the centerpiece of
the Cavaliers' late-1980s and early-1990s rise, earning five NBA
All-Star selections before back problems forced him to retire at
age 28.
Cleveland's unusual No. 1 pick: The Cavaliers did
not originally own the first selection. Philadelphia had obtained
the Clippers' pick and then traded the selection to Cleveland
shortly before the draft. Cleveland used it on Daugherty.
Ron Harper bonus selection: Cleveland also held
the eighth overall pick, a special compensation selection awarded
by the NBA as part of the league's response to draft choices
previously traded away under former Cavaliers owner Ted Stepien.
The Cavaliers selected Miami (Ohio) guard Ron Harper.
Len Bias: Boston selected Maryland star Len Bias
second overall with a pick originally acquired from Seattle.
Bias was regarded as one of the elite prospects of his generation,
but died from cardiac arrhythmia related to cocaine use on June 19,
1986, only two days after the draft. He never played in the NBA.
Chuck Person: Indiana selected Auburn forward
Chuck Person fourth overall. Person won the 1986-87 NBA Rookie of
the Year Award after averaging 18.8 points per game for the Pacers.
Roy Tarpley: Dallas selected Michigan big man Roy
Tarpley seventh overall. Tarpley became an immediate impact player
and won the 1987-88 NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award, although
off-court problems later interrupted his career.
John Salley: Detroit selected Georgia Tech forward
John Salley 11th overall. Salley became a member of the Pistons'
1989 and 1990 championship teams and later won titles with Chicago
in 1996 and the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000.
Dell Curry: Utah selected Virginia Tech guard Dell
Curry 15th overall. He later became closely associated with the
Charlotte Hornets, won the 1993-94 NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award
and played 16 NBA seasons.
Arvydas Sabonis: Portland selected Soviet star
Arvydas Sabonis 24th overall. The Lithuanian center did not make
his NBA debut until 1995, when he was 31 years old, but still
became an important player for the Trail Blazers.
Sabonis and the Hall of Fame: Sabonis was one of
the greatest international players of his generation. His
accomplishments in Europe and international competition helped
earn him induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of
Fame in 2011.
Mark Price: Dallas selected Georgia Tech point
guard Mark Price with the first pick of the second round, No. 25
overall. His rights were traded to Cleveland, where he became a
four-time NBA All-Star and one of the league's premier shooters
and point guards.
Dennis Rodman: Detroit selected Southeastern
Oklahoma State forward Dennis Rodman 27th overall. Rodman became
one of the greatest rebounders and defenders in NBA history,
winning five championships, two Defensive Player of the Year
Awards and seven consecutive rebounding titles.
Rodman's unlikely path: Rodman's selection was
especially remarkable because he came from NAIA program
Southeastern Oklahoma State rather than a major Division I
basketball power. He eventually entered the Basketball Hall of
Fame in 2011.
Kevin Duckworth: San Antonio selected Eastern
Illinois center Kevin Duckworth 33rd overall. After an early trade
to Portland, Duckworth developed into a two-time NBA All-Star and
won the 1987-88 NBA Most Improved Player Award.
Jeff Hornacek: Phoenix found one of the draft's
biggest steals with the 46th overall selection. Hornacek became an
NBA All-Star with the Suns and later started for the Utah Jazz
teams that reached consecutive NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998.
Dražen Petrović: Portland selected Yugoslavian
guard Dražen Petrović 60th overall in the third round. He joined
the Trail Blazers in 1989 and later became an All-NBA player with
the New Jersey Nets.
Petrović's legacy: Petrović was named to the
1992-93 All-NBA Third Team after averaging 22.3 points per game.
His career was tragically cut short when he died in an automobile
accident in Germany in June 1993 at age 28. He was inducted into
the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.
International depth: The draft's international
selections included Sabonis, Petrović, Panagiotis Fasoulas,
Augusto Binelli, Alexander Volkov and Valeri Tikhonenko. Several
were selected years before NBA teams regularly incorporated
international prospects into their rotations.
Alexander Volkov: Atlanta selected Soviet forward
Alexander Volkov with the 134th overall pick in the sixth round.
He later joined the Hawks and played 149 regular-season NBA games
between 1989 and 1992.
Late-round contributors: The extended draft
produced several NBA players well beyond the first three rounds.
Conner Henry went 89th, Richard Rellford 95th, Clinton Smith 97th,
Dominic Pressley 99th, Steffond Johnson 100th, Pete Myers 120th,
Curtis Kitchen 122nd, Tim Kempton 124th and Anthony Frederick
133rd.
Pete Myers: Chicago selected Myers 120th overall
in the sixth round. He went on to play nine NBA seasons and is
perhaps best remembered for beginning the 1993-94 season as the
Bulls' starting shooting guard following Michael Jordan's first
retirement.
Five NBA All-Stars: Brad Daugherty, Mark Price,
Dennis Rodman, Kevin Duckworth and Jeff Hornacek each appeared in
at least one NBA All-Star Game.
Value outside Round 1: The three players with the
highest career NBA win-share totals among the 1986 selections were
Jeff Hornacek, Dennis Rodman and Mark Price. All three were selected
after the first round.
162 selections: The seven-round draft contained
162 selections. Basketball-Reference records 68 of those players
as eventually appearing in an NBA regular-season or playoff game.
