Isiah Thomas

File:Isiah thomas.jpg

Isiah Thomas

Isiah Thomas (born April 30 1961, in Chicago, Illinois) is a former professional basketball player in the NBA, and is currently the head coach and president of basketball operations for the NBA's New York Knicks. His name is spelled Isiah but pronounced the same as the more common Isaiah /aɪˈzeʌ/. He was also referred to by the nicknames Zeke, Cuts (for the numerous cuts over his eyelids), The Baby-faced Assassin, The Smiling Assassin, and Tuss.

High school, college, and Olympic career

In high school, Thomas was an All-American guard on Gene Pingatore's first team at St. Joseph Catholic High School in Westchester, Illinois.[1] Later, Thomas played for Indiana University and was named to the 1980 Olympic team, although the U.S. boycotted that year's games in Moscow in protest of the invasion of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union. He earned All-Big Ten honors in 1980, becoming the first freshman in conference history to accomplish the feat. In 1981, during his sophomore season at Indiana, Thomas was an All-American, averaging 16 points and 5.8 assists a game as he led the Hoosiers to a 26-9 national championship season. In the title game at Philadelphia, he scored a game-high 23 points in Indiana's 63-50 victory over the University of North Carolina. He left Indiana for the National Basketball Association in 1981. He earned a bachelor's degree from IU in criminal justice several years later, as he promised his mother in writing that he would when he left college early to enter the NBA Draft.

NBA playing career

In the 1981 NBA Draft, the Detroit Pistons chose Thomas and signed him to a four-year $1.6 million contract. With their rookie point guard averaging 17 points and 7.8 assists, the Pistons improved by 18 games, from 21-61 in the 1980-81 NBA season to 39-43 in the 1981-82 NBA season. Thomas made the All-Rookie team after starting for the East in the 1982 NBA All-Star Game.

In 1983, Thomas averaged 22.9 points, which would be his career high, and made the All-NBA second-team. The following year, under new coach Chuck Daly, he averaged 21.3 points and 11.1 assists and was voted first-team after leading the Pistons to a 49-33 record, the franchise's first winning season in seven years.

In the opening round of the 1984 NBA Playoffs, Isiah Thomas and the Pistons faced off against Bernard King and the New York Knicks. In the pivotal fifth game, Isiah Thomas was having a subpar performance, while Bernard King was having an excellent game. However, in the 4th quarter, Isiah scored 16 points in one minute and 33 seconds to force the game into overtime. King and the Knicks, however, held on to win in overtime.

Thomas recorded 1,123 assists (13.9 average) in 1985, breaking the NBA record of 1,099 set by Detroit's Kevin Porter in 1979, and was named all-league first team.

In Game 6 of the 1988 NBA Finals, Thomas set an NBA Finals record by scoring 25 points in a quarter, while playing on a severely injured ankle. However, Detroit ended up losing that series.

With fellow Detroit Bad Boys teammates Joe Dumars, Rick Mahorn, Vinnie "the Microwave" Johnson, Dennis Rodman, and Bill Laimbeer, he led the Pistons to NBA titles in 1989 and 1990, and was voted NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in 1990 after averaging 27.6 points per game, 7.0 assists per game, and 5.2 rebounds per game in the series.

Thomas, a 6-1, 182 pound point guard, ranks as one of the 50 greatest players of all-time. From 1981 to 1994 Thomas had an exceptional career with the Detroit Pistons. He was a 12-time NBA All-Star, and is the Pistons' all-time leader in points, steals, games played and assists. Thomas ranks fourth in NBA history in assists (9,061, 9.3 apg) and ranks ninth in NBA history in steals (1,861). Thomas was known for his dazzling dribbling ability as well as his uncanny ability to drive to the basket and score on much bigger players.

Controversy

In the 1985 NBA All-Star Game, Isiah was joined on the Eastern Conference squad by rookie Michael Jordan. Isiah was reportedly unhappy and very jealous that Michael Jordan was better than him and with all of the attention Jordan was receiving, and encouraged several other veterans on the East team to "freeze-out" Jordan, not allowing him to receive the ball. Neither side has ever confirmed the freeze-out in public, but the story has been reported for decades, with neither Jordan nor Isiah discrediting the incident.[2]

During the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals, Isiah and the Detroit Pistons faced off against Larry Bird and the favored Boston Celtics. In Game 5 in Boston, Detroit led by a point with five seconds left and maintained possession. Isiah attempted to inbound the ball, but it was stolen by Bird, who quickly passed the ball to Dennis Johnson for the game-winning layup. This play is considered one of the more embarrassing moments of Isiah's playing career. Boston went on to win the series in seven games. Following the defeat in Game 7, Isiah was asked about Bird's performance in the series. Isiah responded that, "If Bird were black, he'd be just another good guy."

In a game televised on CBS in 1989, Thomas instigated a fight with Chicago Bulls center Bill Cartwright. Retaliating to an elbow, Thomas punched Cartwright in the head, breaking his left hand in the process; he also received a cut over one of his eyes.

In the 1991 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, the two-time defending champion Detroit Pistons were yet again facing Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Although the Pistons had ousted the Bulls in previous years, Jordan and teammate Scottie Pippen led the Bulls to a four-game sweep over Detroit. Following the defeat, Isiah and his teammates walked off of the court, refusing to shake hands with the members of the Bulls.

While coaching a regular season game in 2006, a brawl broke out between the Isaih's New York Knicks and the Denver Nuggets (see Knicks-Nuggets Brawl). With less than two minutes remaining in the game he was caught on videotape mouthing the words "You shouldn't go to the basket right now, it wouldn't be a good idea" to opposing player Carmelo Anthony. An ensuing foul on Nuggets guard J.R. Smith was ruled a flagrant foul and set off a series of violent scuffles between the two teams. Ten players were ultimately ejected. Some suspect that Thomas instigated the brawl by instructing his players to flagrantly foul Nuggets players for running up the score.

Main Article: Knicks-Nuggets brawl

Olympic snub

In 1992, Thomas was passed over by the U.S. Olympic Basketball Team (popularly known as the Dream Team). Some believe that Thomas was left off because he was aging and his skills were declining. Others felt Thomas was snubbed by the team because Michael Jordan did not want him on the same team due to their bitter rivalry in several playoff battles , which included the much-discussed freeze-out in the 1985 All-Star Game and the Jordan Rules for defending Jordan, as well as the behavior of Isiah and his teammates after Jordan led the Bulls past Detroit in the 1991 Eastern Conference Finals, and bad feelings over a 1989 fight between Thomas had with Bulls center Bill Cartwright during a nationally televised game. In addition, after the first 10 players selected for the Dream Team were announced, Jordan's Bulls and Olympic teammate Scottie Pippen labeled Thomas a cheap-shot artist and said he wouldn't play on the Olympic team if Thomas was one of the two players added to fill out the squad .

During the Pistons' first game against Stockton's Utah Jazz after the Dream Team selection was announced, Thomas scored 44 points in a Detroit victory. [3]. He announced that he belonged on the Olympic team, and while he didn't name Stockton outright, many inferred that Thomas was saying it was over Stockton . When the two met again on December 14, Thomas drove to the basket and was elbowed above his left eye by Jazz forward Karl Malone, opening a gash that required some 40 stitches while nearly knocking him unconscious in the process. Some, including then-Pistons coach Chuck Daly, felt the elbow was intentional due to Thomas' embarrassment of Stockton in the previous game and his comment afterwards. While Thomas was receiving medical attention, an irate Daly yelled insults at Malone, who was ejected after playing only 4 minutes in the game. As a result of the blow, Thomas suffered vision problems and headaches for the next two weeks, but only missed three games.

Post-NBA career

Toronto Raptors

After retirement Thomas became part owner and Executive Vice President for the expansion Toronto Raptors from 1994 to 1998, but left the organization after a dispute with new management. Over his 4-year tenure with the team, Raptors drafted Damon Stoudamire, Marcus Camby and high-schooler Tracy McGrady, but were unable to make the playoffs.

Broadcasting

After leaving the Raptors, Thomas became a television commentator (first as the lead game analyst with play-by-play man Bob Costas and then as part of the studio team) for NBC. Thomas' sometimes clumsy, monotone vocal delivery eventually led NBC to add Bill Walton as a secondary analyst to help compensate for Isiah's deficiencies as a commentator during game broadcasts. Thomas also worked a three man booth with Costas and Doug Collins.

CBA

Thomas became the owner of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) from 1998 to 2000. After his purchase of the Continental Basketball Association, the league was forced into bankruptcy and folded. Many CBA managers blamed Thomas' mismanagement and out-of-control spending.

Indiana Pacers

From 2000 to 2003, Thomas coached the Indiana Pacers, succeeding Larry Bird, who previously coached the Pacers to the NBA Eastern Conference title. Working with the leadership of Reggie Miller, Thomas helped bring up young talents such as Jermaine O'Neal, Jamaal Tinsley, Al Harrington, and Jeff Foster. In his first two seasons with the Pacers, the team was eliminated in the first round by teams that went on to become the Eastern Conference Champions in that year: the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Nets.

In his last year with the Pacers, Thomas guided them to a 48-34 record in the regular season and coached the East squad at the 2003 NBA All-Star game. The game was also Michael Jordan's final All-Star game. Thomas was criticized for overplaying Jordan during the game as an attempt to make up for their past feud. As the third seed, the Pacers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the sixth-seed Boston Celtics. With blossoming talents such as Brad Miller, Ron Artest, Al Harrington and Jamaal Tinsley, along with the veteran leadership of Reggie Miller, the perception existed that the Pacers' unfulfilled potential stemmed from Isiah Thomas' inexperience as a coach. In the offseason, Larry Bird returned to the Pacers as President of Basketball Operations, and his first act was to replace Thomas with Rick Carlisle. Bird's decision may have been influenced by his weak relationship with Thomas.

Hall of Fame

In 2000, Thomas was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

New York Knicks

On December 22, 2003, he was given the job of president of basketball operations by the New York Knicks. He immediately changed the face of the franchise by trading for a number of high-priced stars. However, despite a very high payroll, the team performed poorly, finishing last in the Atlantic Division in 2005. To address this, Thomas has made even more trades, sometimes trading away players he had paid a high price to trade for just a year or so previously.

Thomas has seemingly been unsuccessful with the Knicks roster and fanbase so far. At the end of the 2005-2006 season, the Knicks have the highest payroll in the NBA, yet have earned the second-worst record in the NBA, and have traded away several future draft picks, including the number 2 overall pick in 2006. The 2005 signing of career backup Jerome James to a 5-year $30 million free-agent contract was seen as a very questionable[4], even more so as he averaged only 2.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 22 games.

On June 22, 2006, the New York Knicks fired coach Larry Brown, and Thomas replaced him. Owner James Dolan has said that he is giving Thomas one year to turn around the Knicks and make them a better franchise or he will be fired.[5]

Role in 2006 Brawl

On December 16, 2006, the New York Knicks shooting guard Mardy Collins commited a flagrant foul against Denver Nuggets shooting guard J.R. Smith that started a brawl in which all 10 players on the floor got ejected with only two minutes left in the game when the Nuggets were winning 119-100.

(Main article: Knicks-Nuggets brawl)

Other

Thomas, a self-proclaimed fan of popcorn who has served as the official spokesperson for National Popcorn Poppin' Month, is a partner in the New York-based gourmet-popcorn chain Dale and Thomas Popcorn [6]. It was known as "Popcorn, Indiana", prior to his investment. The company currently has seven stores, two in Manhattan, and one each in Teaneck, New Jersey, Long Island, Philadelphia, Minnesota and West Nyack, New York, plus online and mail-order operations.

Sexual harassment lawsuit

On January 24, 2006, Thomas and Madison Square Garden were sued for sexual harassment and retaliation by Anucha Browne Sanders.[7] Thomas is alleged to have made numerous sexist and demeaning statements to Sanders as well as making sexual advances and repeatedly telling her that he was in love with her. The lawsuit also alleges that Thomas told Sanders he was pushing for more home games at noon on Sundays. His plan, according to Sanders, was to have opposing players go to New York clubs the night before to get them drunk so they would be sluggish for the next day's game.

Lawyers for Thomas claim the suit is a baseless attempt by Sanders to earn a large amount of money. In the days following the lawsuit becoming public knowledge, Thomas called two separate press conferences to deny that he had ever harassed Sanders. However, since the lawsuit became public, several other employees and former employees have come forward with similar lawsuits, and some in the public are questioning the Knicks organization's stand on sexual harassment and discrimination.

On September 19, 2006, the federal agency Equal Employment Opportunity Commission found probable cause to believe a hostile work environment existed at Madison Square Garden, and found that the treatment of Sanders was not an isolated incident. The agency reported that her treatment included "severe and pervasive verbal sexual harassment." The Knick organization responded that they disagreed with the preliminary administrative review. While Isiah Thomas has not yet responded, his lawyer says Thomas will be given the chance to face Sanders in court and present evidence of his innocence.

Career highlights

One of Thomas's best-known and most defining performances came in Game 6 of the 1988 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Although he had badly sprained his ankle in the game, Thomas continued to play. Hobbling and in obvious pain, Isiah was still able to score 25 points in a single quarter of that contest, setting an NBA Finals record.

Another spectacular performance came in the decisive Game 5 against New York in the 1984 playoffs, when he scored 16 points in the final 94 seconds of the 4th quarter.

Also when he lost to the Celtics because he made a bad pass that was intercepted by Larry Bird who made the game winning shot over the Pistons. Isiah Thomas was said to have been called a "bastard" and a "son-of-a-bitch" after the game when he was leaving the stadium to his car, by fans.

Lifetime stats

• Games: 979
• PTS: 18822
• PPG: 19.2
• APG: 9.3
• RPG: 2.7
• ASST: 9061
• STL: 1861
• FG%: .452
• FT%: .759

External links

• Isiah Thomas Player Profile (InterBasket)