| 1985 NBA Draft | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Date | June 18, 1985 |
| Location | Felt Forum,Madison Square Garden (New York City,New York)[1] |
| Network | TBS Superstation |
| Overview | |
| 162 total selections in7 rounds | |
| League | NBA |
| First selection | Patrick Ewing (New York Knicks) |
| Hall of Famers | |
The1985NBA draft took place on June 18, 1985. It was also the first NBA draft of the "lottery" era. It was also around this time where the league decreased the amount of rounds the draft spent, with the previous few years lasting up to 10 rounds total. A total of 162 players were selected over seven rounds by the league's 23 teams.[2]
TheNew York Knicks were awarded the first overall pick by winning the first-everNBA draft lottery, which was held in May of that year. The Knicks used it onGeorgetown'sPatrick Ewing. In addition to Ewing, this draft also resulted in several Hall of Famers, includingKarl Malone taken by theUtah Jazz at pick 13.
| PG | Point guard | SG | Shooting guard | SF | Small forward | PF | Power forward | C | Center |
| ^ | Denotes player who has been inducted to theNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| * | Denotes player who has been selected for at least oneAll-Star Game andAll-NBA Team |
| + | Denotes player who has been selected for at least oneAll-Star Game |
| x | Denotes player who has been selected for at least oneAll-NBA Team |
| # | Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular-season or playoff game |
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* Further compensation for draft choices previously traded away byTed Stepien.
** Compensation for theUtah Jazz signingBilly Paultz
*** Compensation for theLos Angeles Lakers signingLarry Spriggs
**** Compensation for theAtlanta Hawks signing Billy Paultz
These players were not selected in the 1985 draft but played at least one game in the NBA.
| Player | Pos. | Nationality | School/club team |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Cooke | PF |  United States | Saint Mary's(Sr.) |
| Dennis Nutt | PG | United States | TCU(Sr.) |
| João Vianna | PF |  Brazil | C.A. Monte Líbano(Brazil) |
Some have argued that NBA CommissionerDavid Stern fixed the first overall pick to help his hometown team, the strugglingNew York Knicks. The lottery system used in 1985 involved a random drawing of seven envelopes from a hopper, with each of the then-seven non-playoff teams having an equal chance of obtaining the first pick. Inside each of the envelopes was the logo of a non-playoff team. The team whose envelope was drawn first would get the first pick. The process was then repeated until the rest of the first seven lottery picks were determined. In the U.S.,CBS had live coverage of Stern pulling the envelopes from the hopper (as opposed to NBA Draft lotteries today where the actual drawing is held behind closed doorsbefore the results are revealed on TV).
The "frozen envelope theory" suggests that theNational Basketball Association rigged its 1985 draft lottery so thatPatrick Ewing would join theNew York Knicks. Theorists claim that a lottery envelope was chilled so that it could be identified by touch.[5] A similar "hot balls theory", promoted by Scottish football managerDavid Moyes, suggests that certain balls used in draws forUEFA andAFC competitions have been warmed to achieve specific outcomes.[6][7][8][9]
According to another theory, some claim that when an accountant fromErnst & Whinney (the same firm used byGulf + Western, then-owners of the Knicks[10]) inserted the seven envelopes into the glass drum, some have claimed that he banged the fourth one against the side of the drum to create a creased corner, thereby making it easier for Stern to determine which envelope to choose: the envelope containing the Knicks logo.[11] According to this theory, as the drum was being spun by NBA security director Jack Joyce, Stern was watching the envelopes closely. He then opened the drum, took a deep breath, reached in and selected the envelope with the bent corner and the Knicks logo. This has not been confirmed or corroborated by any official source, as most note that the spinning of the drum was far more forceful than any movement by Joyce, deliberate or otherwise.[12]
For the third year in a row and the seventh time in eight years, no college underclassman would withdraw their entry into the NBA draft. This year, however, saw a total of twelve players qualify for entry as college underclassmen, including aSudanese born freshman center namedManute Bol, who would be considered the tallest player in NBA history at the time. The followingcollege basketball players successfully applied for early draft entrance.[13]
George Almones – G,Southwestern Louisiana (junior) Joe Atkinson – F,Oklahoma State (junior)Benoit Benjamin – C,Creighton (junior)
Manute Bol – C,Bridgeport (freshman) Kenny Brown – G,Texas A&M (junior)Derrick Gervin – F,Texas–San Antonio (junior)Kenny Green – F,Wake Forest (junior)Karl Malone – F,Louisiana Tech (junior)Jerry Reynolds – F,LSU (junior) Reggie Roberts – G,Texas A&M (junior)Wayman Tisdale – F,Oklahoma (junior) Carl Wright – G,SMU (junior)The 1985 NBA draft is considered to be the eighth NBA draft to have utilized what's properly considered the "green room" experience for NBA prospects. The NBA's green room is a staging area where anticipated draftees often sit with their families and representatives, waiting for their names to be called on draft night. Often being positioned either in front of or to the side of the podium (in this case, being positioned in the Madison Square Garden'sFelt Forum for the first time the NBA draft used a green room there[14]), once a player heard his name, he would walk to the podium to shake hands and take promotional photos with the NBA commissioner. From there, the players often conducted interviews with various media outlets while backstage. However, once the NBA draft started to air nationally on TV starting with the1980 NBA draft, the green room evolved from players waiting to hear their name called and then shaking hands with these select players who were often called to the hotel to take promotional pictures with the NBA commissioner a day or two after the draft concluded to having players in real-time waiting to hear their names called up and then shaking hands withDavid Stern, the NBA's commissioner at the time.[15] The NBA compiled its list of green room invites through collective voting by the NBA's team presidents and general managers alike, which in this year's case belonged to only what they believed were the top 13 prospects at the time.[16] However, for the fourth year in a row, one invite inDwayne McClain would end up staying in the green room beyond the first round of the draft. Even so, the following players were invited to attend this year's draft festivities live and in person.[14]
Benoit Benjamin – C,CreightonJoe Dumars – SG,McNeese State
/Patrick Ewing – C,GeorgetownJoe Kleine – C,ArkansasJon Koncak – C,Southern MethodistKeith Lee – C,Memphis StateKarl Malone – PF,Louisiana TechDwayne McClain – SG,VillanovaXavier McDaniel – PF,Wichita StateChris Mullin – SF,St. John's
Detlef Schrempf – SF/PF,WashingtonWayman Tisdale – PF,Oklahoma
Bill Wennington – CSt. John's Jamaica, but had become a naturalized United States citizen while at Georgetown, as evidenced by his selection to theUSA team at the1984 Olympics.
