Len Bias

Bias after being selected in the 1986 NBA Draft.
Position	Forward
Height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Weight	210 lb (95 kg)
Nationality	USA
Born	November 18, 1963(1963-11-18) Landover, Maryland
Died	June 19, 1986 (aged 22) College Park, Maryland
College	Maryland
Draft	2nd overall, 1986 Boston Celtics
Pro career	1986–1986
Awards	ACC Athlete of the Year (1986), ACC Player of the Year (1985-86)

Leonard Kevin Bias (November 18, 1963 – June 19, 1986) was an American college basketball player who suffered a fatal cardiac arrhythmia that resulted from a cocaine overdose less than 48 hours after being selected by the Boston Celtics in the 1986 NBA Draft. Bias was the second player selected in the draft, after Brad Daugherty of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Bias was known to his family, friends, teammates, and in the media as "Len" or "Lenny" rather than by his formal name, Leonard. Image File history File links LenBias. ... In the context of basketball, forward usually refers to one of two positions: Power forward Small forward In addition, some basketball players share the attributes of a small forward and a point guard, and are accordingly called point forwards. ... is the 322nd day of the year (323rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Maryland. ... Landover is an area of Prince Georges County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America. ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Maryland. ... College Park is a city in Prince Georges County, Maryland, USA, United States. ... The University of Maryland, College Park (also known as UM, UMD, or UMCP) is a public university located in the city of College Park, in Prince Georges County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., in the United States. ... The 1986 NBA Draft is perhaps most notable for the drug-related death of highly-touted Len Bias less than two days after being selected second overall by the defending champion Boston Celtics. ... The Boston Celtics are a professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. ... is the 322nd day of the year (323rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 170th day of the year (171st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Game between Illinois State Redbirds & Ball State Cardinals, February 17, 2007 in an ESPN Bracketbuster contest. ... Cardiac arrhythmia is any of a group of conditions in which the electrical activity of the heart is irregular or is faster or slower than normal. ... Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. ... A drug overdose occurs when a chemical substance (i. ... The Boston Celtics are a professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. ... The 1986 NBA Draft is perhaps most notable for the drug-related death of highly-touted Len Bias less than two days after being selected second overall by the defending champion Boston Celtics. ... Bradley Lee Daugherty (born October 19, 1965 in Black Mountain, North Carolina) is an American former basketball player at the University of North Carolina and later with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. Brad played basketball at Charles D. Owen High School in Black Mountain, North Carolina. ... The Cleveland Cavaliers (also known as the Cavs) are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. ...

College career

From Landover, Maryland, Bias attended Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, and subsequently the University of Maryland where he became a star player and an All-American. Wearing number 34, he impressed basketball fans with his amazing leaping ability, his physical stature and his ability to create plays. During his college career Bias was considered one of the most dynamic players in the nation. In fact, Bias was rated by some draft publications as the most complete forward ever to come out of college.^{[citation needed]} Bias was one of the first, if not the first player to warrant comparisons to Michael Jordan,^[1] even though Jordan himself was only in his second professional season at the time Bias was drafted. Landover is an area of Prince Georges County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America. ... Northwestern High School is a public comprehensive secondary school located in Hyattsville, Maryland in Prince Georges County. ... Hyattsville is a city located in Prince Georges County, Maryland, USA. // History The city was named for its founder, Christopher Clark Hyatt. ... The University of Maryland, College Park (also known as UM, UMD, or UMCP) is a public university located in the city of College Park, in Prince Georges County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., in the United States. ... All-American, a Broadway musical with book by Mel Brooks, music by Charles Strouse, and lyrics by Lee Adams, opened in New York on March 19, 1962, and played 80 performances. ... For other persons named Michael Jordan, see Michael Jordan (disambiguation). ...

Bias died in a dormitory on the University of Maryland, College Park campus. Later, his death would be featured as part of an anti-drug media campaign. A district court and court of appeals found that Bias was an intravenous drug user.

Death

Bias was selected by the defending NBA champion Celtics as the second overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft. Bias and his father flew to Boston, Massachusetts, from Washington, DC, for an NBA Club draft acceptance and product endorsement signing ceremony with the Celtics' coaches and management; as well as with Adidas' Sports-Marketing Division. His father left Boston alone, to return to Washington in the late afternoon and he gave a short press conference for the local Washington, DC, media at the then Washington National Airport. The media were at the airport expecting to interview Len Bias. So his father had to "stand-in" for him, reporting on their "day with the Celtics" and their appreciation of the beginning of a new chapter in his and his son's life. Bias arrived back at Washington National alone later in the evening, on nearly the last Shuttle flight from Boston^{[citation needed]}. No media were present, and so far as is known he was met by no one. He retrieved from airport parking, his newly leased sports car (a 1986 Nissan 300Z), (provided through his agent, as a kind of NBA/Sports Endorsement contract anticipation loan) and drove back to his room(s) on the campus of the University of Maryland.^{[citation needed]} The 1986 NBA Draft is perhaps most notable for the drug-related death of highly-touted Len Bias less than two days after being selected second overall by the defending champion Boston Celtics. ... Boston redirects here. ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ... For the capital city of the United States, see Washington, D.C.. For other uses, see Washington (disambiguation). ... Aerial photo (looking NW) of the Washington Monument and the White House in Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia (also known as D.C.; Washington; the Nations Capital; the District; and, historically, the Federal City) is the capital city and administrative district of the United... Color enhanced USGS satellite image of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, taken April 26, 2002. ... Color enhanced USGS satellite image of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, taken April 26, 2002. ... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ...

 However, prior to, and concurrent with, some of the given timelines of his activities at the campus, Bias' vehicle would be observed and recorded by undercover agents of the Washington, DC metropolitan police department “cruising” one of the city’s most notorious drug neighborhoods along Montana Avenue, in the northeast section of the city. Although the surveillance did not determine who specifically was in the vehicle, or that the vehicle stopped for any purpose, they did estimate there were at least two persons, driver and passenger in the vehicle, and they recorded its license number. 

The campus timeline said he arrived back onto campus at around 11:00 p.m., and ate crabs with some teammates and a member of the football team. He left campus at approximately 2 a.m. on the 19th and drove to an off-campus gathering, which he attended briefly before returning to his dorm at 3:00 a.m. Bias took a lethal dose of cocaine through inhalation (snorting), which, because of its location and method of ingestion (the nasal cavity), the dose went immediately to the autonomic nerve center of the brain. There, it shut down the nerve signals that tell the diaphragm to expand/contract (allowing a person to breathe).^{[citation needed]} In other words, as the dosage in his blood stream rose (through inhalation), he promptly stopped breathing. In addition, other secondary effects of the overdosage were convulsive vomiting and an irregular heartbeat.^{[citation needed]}

As he was in the presence of persons who were also in a diminished capacity and mental state, and who also had neither the skills nor the tools to deal with this immediate health emergency, Bias continued into respiratory failure, convulsions and ultimately heart stoppage. This state could only have been reversed by a skilled EMT team who were present, and could move into action at the onset of the emergency. As this was not the case, once he went into convulsions Bias could not be revived in time. As was recorded in the call to the emergency services Bias was already unconscious and not breathing when the call was finally made to the emergency services. When they arrived the EMT team undertook the procedures for a patient who is found not breathing and heart stopped, but otherwise uninjured. All attempts to restart his heart and stimulate him to begin respiration were unsuccessful. According to the campus timeline, the following sequence of events took place. While Bias was talking with teammate Terry Long, he collapsed sometime between 6:25 and 6:32. According to Bias' sister (who only had a secondhand account of the story), Bias was sitting on a couch and leaned back as though he was going to sleep, but instead began to have a seizure. Bias was pronounced dead at Leland Memorial Hospital in Riverdale, Maryland, of a cardiac arrhythmia related to the cocaine overdose.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} He was only 22 years old. Terry Long was a collegiate basketball player with the Maryland Terrapins in the mid 1980s. ... Cardiac arrhythmia is any of a group of conditions in which the electrical activity of the heart is irregular or is faster or slower than normal. ...

Four days after his death, more than 11,000 people packed the Cole Field House, the university arena where Len Bias had played for the Terrapins, for a memorial service. Those speaking at the service included Boston Celtics president Arnold "Red" Auerbach, who said he had planned for three years to get Len onto the Celtics, and that the city of Boston had not been so shaken since the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The Reverend Jesse Jackson compared Bias' death to Jesus Christ, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Mahatma Gandhi, describing each as "young, gifted, strong and militant, all taken in the prime of their lives." "Lenny was vulnerable because all of us are vulnerable. He is being used by God to save a generation," Jackson continued. "Tonight, the children mourn. Let us hope they learn."^[7] The Boston Celtics are a professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts. ... Arnold Jacob Red Auerbach (September 20, 1917 – October 28, 2006) was a highly successful and influential basketball coach of the BAA Washington Nationals, the NBA Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the NBA Boston Celtics. ... Nickname: City on the Hill, Beantown, The Hub (of the Universe)1, Athens of America, The Cradle of Revolution, Puritan City, Americas Walking City Location in Massachusetts, USA Counties Suffolk County Mayor Thomas M. Menino(D) Area    - City 232. ... John Kennedy and JFK redirect here. ... Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Martin Luther King redirects here. ... “Mozart” redirects here. ... “Gandhi” redirects here. ...

Len Bias was buried in Lincoln Memorial Cemetery in Suitland, Maryland^[8].

The lawsuit

Len Bias' parents, as executors of his estate, brought suit against three parties in United States District Court. Bias' parents sued the Adidas Shoe Company, Lloyds Insurance Underwriters, and Advantage International (and joined with Advantage International, its employee agent who represented Len Bias), a sports and entertainment agents' firm. These defendants won a grant of summary judgment in District Court. The plaintiffs then filed an appeal to the US Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals' decision was reported in Bias v. Advantage International, Inc., et.al., (905 F.2d 1558, 1990).

The original suit claimed: (1) that Bias’ estate was owed a $1 million contract signing bonus that it was alleged Adidas entered into with Bias on the afternoon of his death at the signing ceremony where he also signed his rookie contract with the Boston Celtics Basketball Club; (2) that Bias’ parents were directly owed a similar amount as the beneficiaries on a “Jumbo” comprehensive liability policy that they had purchased from Lloyds Insurance (paying the initial annual premium in full) one year earlier; and (3) that Advantage International (by and through their agent - employee) had failed in their duty to their client (Bias) to obtain a life insurance policy (also of at least $1 million in value) as the parents asserted that Bias had instructed his agent to do.

In court, the parents failed on each assertion. First, the endorsement contract signed with Adidas was found and determined to contain a “stand pat” clause of 72 hours. This clause meant for this contract that the signatory parties agreed to take no actions that relied upon, or to treat as binding, the performance terms of the contract; for three (3) days after their signing. Only at the commencement of the 73rd hour after the contract signing, would the contract; through to this clause, be regarded as in effect. In addition, in this clause, if there were any change(s) to any one of a predetermined set of enumerated conditions during the seventy-two (72) hour window (such as the death of a signatory party), the contract would be immediately and automatically be terminated; without prejudice to any of the parties.

Next, it was found and determined that the Adidas-Bias contract contained an Excess Value Ratification Clause. This clause enumerated a procedure that was required to implement the terms of the articles of incorporation of the Adidas company. The articles of incorporation stated that any contract (at or above a specified dollar value) signed by the officers or employees of the corporation, on Adidas' behalf, was to be regarded at the time of the signature(s), AS ONLY a preliminary notice of intent to inaugurate a contract between the parties. And that further, the signatory parties of such a contract understood and agreed that the said contract would not be regarded, relied upon, or treated as binding upon any party, or the corporation; unless, and until, the contract had been formally ratified through an affirmative vote of ratification, by the Adidas Board of Directors.

It was therefore found and determined that, at the time of signing, the signatory parties were aware that the performance terms of the endorsement contract (e.g., payment of the signing bonus) could not be considered by Bias or his estate as binding upon Adidas until three (3) days later. The parties also knew at the time of signing, that Bias’ death within the three(3) day stand-still window was one of the enumerated stand-still conditions which automatically terminated the agreement between the parties(without prejudice to either); as soon as Bias was pronounced deceased. And thus, being terminated, any subsequent meeting of the company’s Board of Directors to ratify a contract, which was terminated by a prior contract clause, would have been moot. Bias’s parents next thought they could at least collect upon the “Jumbo” liability policy they undertook from Lloyds Underwriters in 1985.

Bias and his family determined not to enter the 1985 NBA draft at the conclusion of his highly regarded junior year at the University of Maryland. Since there was a real financial risk that an injury or other unforeseen event during his senior year could harm or eliminate Bias' chance at a multi-million dollar professional basketball draft offer and signing, his parents on their own obtained a liability policy from Lloyds Underwriters. Bias’ parents hoped that the policy would insure against the chance that during his senior year Bias was injured in such a way that his potential NBA career was harmed or lost.

However, the nature and circumstances of Bias’ death and his personal life style as revealed at trial led to the finding and determination that Lloyds had properly decided that Bias had voided the policy well before his actual death by deliberately engaging in acts of known high risk. At trial persons who knew Bias personally and well testified that he was a well known recreational cocaine user. His parents could not offer any evidence that impeached this testimony.

The parents then argued that Advantage International and its agent had promised to acquire a one million dollar life insurance policy, which they never did. While this was true, it was a moot point because, as Advantage International argued, no insurance policy (especially a million dollar one) would have been granted to a known cocaine user. Furthermore, had Bias' agent and/or Advantage International misrepresented to an insurance underwriter that Bias was not a known cocaine user and he was found to be so in death, it would have been insurance fraud on their part. Such a policy would still have been void. Despite the estate's beneficiaries' claims that Bias was not an habitual, known user, Bias’ teammates, school trainers and others familiar with his habits testified under oath that he was. The estate's beneficiaries failed to offer any impeachment of this testimony either. Therefore, the Court of Appeals dismissed the complaint and affirmed the trial court's motion for summary judgment. Bias' parents appealed this decision all the way to the United States Supreme Court. The Court refused to hear the case and the Appeals decision stands.

Aftermath

On July 25, 1986, a grand jury returned indictments against Bias's friend Brian Tribble for possession of cocaine and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute) and Bias's Maryland teammates Terry Long (possession of cocaine and obstruction of justice) and David Gregg (possession of cocaine and obstruction of justice)^[9]. Long and Gregg were both suspended from the team July 31^[10]. All three defendants entered not guilty pleas in August^[11].

On October 20, 1986, prosecutors dropped all charges against Long and Gregg in exchange for their testimony against Tribble^[12]. On October 30, the grand jury added three more indictments against Tribble -- one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice and two counts of obstruction of justice^[13].

Also on October 30, Kenneth Mark Fobbs, Tribble's roommate, was charged with perjury for allegedly lying to the grand jury about the last time he saw Tribble^[14]. The state ultimately dropped the perjury charges against Fobbs on March 24, 1987, and a jury acquitted Tribble of all charges related to the Bias case on June 3, 1987^[15].

The circumstances surrounding Bias' death threw the University and its athletics program into turmoil. An investigation revealed that Bias was 21 credits short of the graduation requirement despite having used all his athletic eligibility^[16]. On August 26, 1986, State's Attorney Arthur A. Marshall Jr. stated that in the hours after Bias' death, Maryland head basketball coach Lefty Driesell told players to remove drugs from Bias' dorm room^[17]. Two days later, Bias' father, James S. Bias, accused the University of Maryland, and Driesell specifically, of neglecting the academic status of its athletes^[18]. Charles Lefty Driesell (born December 25, 1931) is a retired college basketball coach. ...

The controversy prompted athletic director Dick Dull to resign October 7, 1986, with Driesell following suit October 29, 1986, after serving as the Terrapins' coach for 17 years^[19]. The grand jury presiding over the Bias case issued a final report on February 26, 1987, that criticized the University of Maryland's athletic department, admissions office, and campus police^[20].

On December 5, 1990, Len's younger brother, James Stanley Bias III, known as Jay and also a promising young basketball talent, was shot to death at age 20 following a dispute in the parking lot of Prince George's Plaza, a Hyattsville shopping mall located just miles from the University of Maryland. Two gunmen had allegedly fired several times into the vehicle Jay and two friends were in, and Jay was shot twice in the back. He was pronounced dead at the same hospital where Len had died, and was buried next to him at Lincoln Memorial Cemetery^[21]. An outbound train enters the Prince Georges Plaza station, as seen from the parking garage. ... Hyattsville is a city located in Prince Georges County, Maryland, USA. // History The city was named for its founder, Christopher Clark Hyatt. ...

In the wake of their sons' deaths, James S. and Lonise Bias assumed vocal roles campaigning against drug use and gun violence. Lonise Bias became an anti-drug lecturer, while James Bias became an advocate for handgun control^[22].

The possibility

Len Bias represents to the NBA, and especially to the Celtics organization, one of the greatest "what-ifs" in basketball history. Many considered Bias to be the perfect complement to the Larry Bird-led Celtics, a potential backup for both Bird and Kevin McHale who would have limited their minutes and perhaps in turn extended their careers. Some, including Red Auerbach and Johnny Dawkins, a Duke assistant who was a high school and college contemporary of Bias, believed that the inclusion of Bias could have allowed for the Boston Celtic organization's continued dominance well into the 1990s. Mike Krzyzewski and Dean Smith have both stated that Michael Jordan and Bias were the best players ever to come through the ranks of the ACC.^[23] NBA redirects here. ... Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is a retired American NBA basketball player, widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, and one of the best clutch performers in the history of sports. ... Kevin Edward McHale (born December 19, 1957) is an American former professional basketball player who starred for thirteen seasons in the NBA for the Boston Celtics. ... Arnold Jacob Red Auerbach (September 20, 1917 – October 28, 2006) was a highly successful and influential basketball coach of the BAA Washington Nationals, the NBA Tri-Cities Blackhawks and the NBA Boston Celtics. ... Johnny Dawkins (born September 28, 1963 in Washington, D.C.) is a former star college basketball player at Duke University and point guard for the Philadelphia 76ers and is currently the associate head coach at Duke. ... Duke University is a private coeducational research university located in Durham, North Carolina, USA. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. ... For the band, see 1990s (band). ... Michael William Krzyzewski (; in American English transliteration shuh-shef-skee; born February 13, 1947 in Chicago, Illinois), often referred to as Coach K due to the difficult pronunciation of his surname, is the head coach of the Duke University mens basketball team. ... Dean Edwards Smith (born February 28, 1931) is a retired head coach of men’s college basketball. ...

Notes and References