The 1981 NBA draft was the 35th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 9, 1981, before the 1981–82 season. The draft was broadcast in the United States on the USA Network.[1] In this draft, 23 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip.[2] The Dallas Mavericks won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Detroit Pistons were awarded the second pick.[3] The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was automatically eligible for selection. Before the draft, five college underclassmen announced that they would leave college early and would be eligible for selection.[4] The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 223 players.
The Dallas Mavericks used their first pick to draft 1980 Naismith College Player of the Year Mark Aguirre from DePaul University. Aguirre, who had just finished his junior season in college, became the second underclassman to be drafted first overall, after Magic Johnson in 1979. The Detroit Pistons used the second overall pick to draft Isiah Thomas, a sophomore guard from Indiana University. Thomas had just won the 1981 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship with Indiana and was named as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. The New Jersey Nets used the third pick to draft another underclassman, Buck Williams, from the University of Maryland. Williams went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award and was also selected to the All-Star Game in his rookie season.[5] This draft marked the first time that the first three selections were college underclassmen.[6] Danny Ainge, the 1981 Wooden College Player of the Year, was selected in the second round with the 31st pick by the Boston Celtics.[7] Ainge had been playing professional baseball since 1979 with the Toronto Blue Jays in the Major League Baseball (MLB) while also playing college basketball at Brigham Young University. He reportedly preferred to continue his baseball career, but the Celtics successfully persuaded him to play basketball instead.[8][9][10] He is one of only twelve athletes who have played in both the NBA and MLB.[11][12][13]
^Simmons, Bill (July 12, 2002). "Let's go to the tape". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^"Evolution of the Draft and Lottery". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on December 3, 2010. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^"Mavericks Win First Draft Pick". The New York Times. May 1, 1981. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^"Early Entry Candidate History". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 14, 2009. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^"Buck Williams Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^Wilbon, Michael (April 15, 1993). "Draft is not for everybody". The Milwaukee Journal. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: The Journal Company. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
^"Danny Ainge Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^"Danny Ainge Statistics and History". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^Ulman, Howarn (June 10, 1981). "Celtics Gamble on Danny Ainge". Lewiston Daily Sun. Lewiston-Auburn, Maine: Sun Media Group. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^"Back in the game". Sports Illustrated. Time Warner Company. May 9, 2003. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^"Sports Hot Line". Beaver County Times. Beaver, Pennsylvania: Calkins Media. November 1, 1981. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^"Hendrickson Becomes Latest to Play In Both NBA and Major League Baseball". WSU Cougars. CBS Interactive. August 9, 2002. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
^Crowe, Jerry (August 13, 2002). "The Inside Track; Morning Briefing; New Coach Pulls the Strings in Washington". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 2, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
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