Isiah Thomas

Basketball Player

• Born: April 30, 1961
• Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois

Basketball player, coach, and executive

Thomas, a Basketball Hall of Fame point guard, was a significant influence on basketball as a sport and as a venue of public entertainment both during his tenure as a player with the Detroit Pistons and as a coach and executive. He is remembered as one of the greatest players at his position in NBA history.

Area of achievement: Sports: basketball

Early Life

Isiah Lord Thomas III was born on April 30, 1961 in Chicago, Illinois. He was the ninth child and youngest son of Isiah Thomas II and Mary Thomas. Thomas grew up on the West Side of Chicago, where poverty, violence, drug use, and gangs were part of everyday life. His father was the first African American supervisor to be employed by the Chicago International Harvester plant; when he lost his job he became resentful and depressed and abandoned the family when Thomas was three years old.

Thomas grew up in a single-parent family that struggled financially but also was supportive and caring. Knowing that basketball could provide a way out of their tough neighborhood, Thomas’s older brothers began working with Isiah to interest him in basketball when he very young. The brothers played on a team at Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic church; Isiah became the team mascot, wearing an oversized jersey and providing entertainment at halftime. Soon, Thomas was playing in the summer leagues. By the time he was eight years old, he showed considerable talent as a point guard.

The family realized that in order for Thomas to go to college, he needed to attend a better high school than the one in his neighborhood. Thus, his brothers went to see Gene Pingatore, the basketball coach of St. Joseph's High School, a Catholic Christian Brothers school in the suburb of Westchester, to ask for a scholarship for Thomas. Pingatore had seen Thomas play and welcomed him to the school. Thomas was successful both academically and athletically at St. Joseph's. He made the honor roll and was named to the all-state basketball team his junior year. In 1979 he played on the United States team that won the gold medal at the Pan American Games.

In the fall, Thomas enrolled at Indiana University, where he played for two years. While at Indiana he contributed significantly to the team’s success both in points scored and assists. In 1980 he was chosen as a member of the US Olympic Team, but the American Olympics boycotts prevented the team from participating. In Thomas's second and last year with the Indiana Hoosiers he was instrumental in the team winning the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship. He received the most outstanding player award. In 1981 Thomas opted to relinquish his remaining collegiate eligibility and entered the National Basketball Association (NBA) draft. Although he left college basketball, he did not terminate his academic studies. In keeping with his mother's wishes, he graduated six years later with a degree in criminal justice.

Life’s Work

Though at six feet one inch tall Thomas was relatively short for the NBA, his college success had attracted the attention of many scouts. In the 1981 NBA draft he was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the second overall pick. He would go on to play with the team for his entire professional career (1981 to 1994). At the time he was drafted, the Pistons were one of the worst teams in the league. With his exceptional skill, determination, and competitive nature, Thomas was a major factor in the team's revival. He made the All-Rookie team and was named a starter in the All-Star Game in 1982, quickly becoming a team leader and a popular star with the fans.

As point guard, Thomas directed the team's play on the court, scored points, and assisted his teammates in scoring. In 1985 the Pistons were able to advance to the semifinals of the NBA playoffs, where they were defeated by the Boston Celtics. In 1987 the team played in the Eastern Conference Finals. In 1988 the Pistons reached the NBA Finals for the first time. They played against the Los Angeles Lakers. During the series, Thomas suffered a sprained ankle that limited his performance, and the Lakers won the title. However, in 1989 and 1990, Thomas led the Pistons—by then nicknamed the "Bad Boys" for their aggressive, physical play—to back-to-back NBA championships. In 1990 Thomas received the NBA Finals most valuable player (MVP) award. However, in 1992 he was notably left off the roster of the US men's Olympic basketball team—known as the Dream Team for its star-studded roster—and rumors spread that it was due to his rivalry with superstar Michael Jordan.

Thomas continued to play for Detroit until his retirement at the end of the 1993–1994 season. Throughout his career with the Pistons Thomas was the team's dominant player. He retired as the team's all-time leader in points, assists, steals, and games played. He was chosen for the NBA All-Star Game twelve times in the thirteen seasons that he played for the Pistons. It was only in his final year (1994), when he was plagued by injuries, that he was not named to the All-Star Team. During the late 1980s and early 1990s Thomas also served as president of the NBA Players Association.

After retiring from the Pistons, Thomas became part owner and executive vice president of the Toronto Raptors, a new expansion team. Thomas was in charge of selecting players and building the team. One of the first players he drafted was Damon Stoudamire, an undersized point guard who defied doubters to win the rookie of the year award for the 1995–1996 season, the Raptors' first season in the NBA. Thomas left the Raptors in 1998 over disagreements with management. He began working as an analyst on basketball broadcasts and purchased the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) in 1998; the association had financial difficulties and declared bankruptcy in 2001.

While still involved with the CBA, Thomas was hired as head coach of the Indiana Pacers. During the time Thomas coached the Pacers, many of the team’s premier players reached retirement age. This situation left Thomas with a young, inexperienced team that suffered early playoff exits for three straight seasons. He was replaced as coach of the Pacers in 2003.

Thomas’s next position was as president of basketball operations with the New York Knicks. During his fraught tenure with the team, he was widely criticized for a series of unsuccessful roster moves that left New York with the highest payroll in the league and the second-worst record in 2005–2006. In 2006 he took over as coach of the Knicks. That year Thomas also was accused of sexual harassment by a former team executive and a jury found him guilty, though the Knicks ownership settled the case and Thomas maintained he was innocent. He remained with the team until 2008. He received significant media attention during his difficult Knicks tenure and further scrutiny after he was fired and hospitalized for an accidental overdose of sleeping pills.

In 2009, Thomas returned to collegiate basketball as head coach of the Golden Panthers of Florida International University (FIU). Under his leadership the team found little success, winning no more than eleven games in each of his three seasons. He was fired in 2012 and took a position as a basketball television analyst. He received a master's degree in education in 2013 from the University of California at Berkeley. In 2015 he was hired as the president of the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). He also continued to pursue charitable efforts, including educational outreach and programs for at-risk and disadvantaged youth. In 2017 he began appearing on TNT basketball programming as an analyst.

Significance

Thomas made significant contributions to the sport of basketball as a player, as a coach, and as an executive. As a player, he led his high school team, his college team, and his professional team to championships. He recognized the importance of teamwork and continually assisted his teammates in scoring efforts, becoming one of the most highly regarded point guards to ever play the game. Although he was much less successful as a coach and executive, he was eager to afford opportunities to young players. While playing in the NBA he was credited with funding the college educations of some seventy-five students through his charity work, for example. Thomas was named one of the fifty greatest players in NBA history by the league in 1996, and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000. His number was also retired by the Detroit Pistons.

Bibliography

Challen, Paul. The Book of Isiah: The Rise of a Basketball Legend. Toronto, Ont.: ECW Press, 1996. Print.

Challen, Paul. From the Back Court to the Front Office: The Isiah Thomas Story . Toronto, Ont.: ECW Press, 2004. Print.

"Isiah L. Thomas." Basketball Hall of Fame, www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/isiah-thomas/. Accessed 21 July 2021.

"Isiah Thomas." NBA Encyclopedia: Playoff Edition. NBA Media Ventures, 2016. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.

"Legends Profile: Isiah Thomas." NBA History, www.nba.com/history/legends/profiles/isiah-thomas. Accessed 21 July 2021.

Puma, Mike. "Isiah Defied the Odds." ESPN Classic. ESPN Internet Ventures, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.

Thomas, Isiah, and Matt Dobek. Bad Boys. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Masters Press, 1989. Print.

Thomas, Isiah, and Wes Smith. The Fundamentals: Eight Plays for Winning the Games of Business and Life. New York: HarperCollins, 2001. Print.