Len Bias

Len Bias

Bias after being selected in the 1986 NBA draft
Personal information
Born	(1963-11-18)November 18, 1963 Landover, Maryland
Died	June 19, 1986(1986-06-19) (aged 22) Riverdale, Maryland
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school	Northwestern (Hyattsville, Maryland)
College	Maryland (1982–1986)
NBA draft	1986 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall
Selected by the Boston Celtics
Position	Small forward
Career highlights and awards
Consensus first-team All-American (1986) Consensus second-team All-American (1985) 2× ACC Player of the Year (1985, 1986) 2× First-team All-ACC (1985, 1986) ACC Athlete of the Year (1986)

Leonard Kevin "Len" Bias (November 18, 1963 – June 19, 1986) was a first-team All-American college basketball forward at the University of Maryland. He was selected by the Boston Celtics as the second overall pick in the 1986 NBA draft on June 17, and died two days later from cardiac arrhythmia induced by a cocaine overdose. He is considered by some sportswriters to be the greatest player not to play at the professional level.

Bias was born and raised in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C.. He was known to friends and family as "Frosty", a nickname he received from his pastor because of his cool demeanor.

Bias was one of four children born to James Bias, Jr. and Dr. Lonise Bias. He had a sister, Michelle, and two brothers, Eric and James III, known as "Jay".

From Landover, Maryland, Bias graduated from Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, and subsequently attended the University of Maryland.

As a freshman, he was viewed as "raw and undisciplined", but developed himself over time into an All-American player. In his junior year, he led the Atlantic Coast Conference in scoring and was named the ACC's Player of the Year. His senior season was highlighted by his performance in an overtime victory against top-ranked North Carolina in which he scored 35 points, including 7 in the last 3 minutes of regulation and 4 in overtime. At the end of the year, Bias collected his second ACC Player of the Year award and was named to two All-America teams.

Bias impressed basketball fans with his amazing leaping ability, his physical stature and his ability to create plays, and was considered one of the most dynamic players in the nation. By his senior year, scouts from various National Basketball Association teams viewed Bias as the most complete forward in the Class of 1986. According to Celtics scout Ed Badger, "He's maybe the closest thing to (Chicago guard) Michael Jordan to come out in a long time. I'm not saying he's as good as Michael Jordan, but he's an explosive and exciting kind of player like that." Jordan was then in his second professional season with the Chicago Bulls.