Isiah Thomas

Lore & Background

Thomas was a two-time NBA champion, an NBA Finals MVP recipient, a five-time All-NBA Team member, a 12-time NBA All-Star with two All-Star Game MVP awards and the 1985 NBA assist leader. He was named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams, and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000. From 2000 to 2012 he coached the Indiana Pacers, New York Knicks, and FIU.

In Their Own Story

The arena lights hummed with anticipation as Isiah Thomas walked onto the hardwood at the Verizon Center, no longer wearing the iconic red jersey of Detroit but carrying the weight of a new responsibility. The crowd's roar shifted from nostalgia for his playing days to a hopeful murmur about what he could build in Washington. He looked out at the court where legends like Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes had once roamed, feeling the pulse of a franchise waiting to be reimagined.

Reader's Guide

Thomas played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers, leading them to the 1981 NCAA championship as a sophomore. He was taken as the second overall pick by the Pistons in the 1981 NBA draft, and played for them his entire career, leading the "Bad Boys" to the 1988–89 and 1989–90 NBA championships. Following his playing career, Thomas was an executive with the Toronto Raptors, a television commentator, the owner of the Continental Basketball Association, the head coach of the Indiana Pacers, and an executive and head coach for the New York Knicks. He later served as men's basketball coach for FIU for three seasons from 2009 to 2012. Thomas was a president and part owner of the New York Liberty from 2015 to 2019.

Did You Know?

• Thomas was born on April 30, 1961, in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up on the city's West Side.
• His mother Mary was the subject of an Emmy award-winning television film in 1989, A Mother's Courage: The Mary Thomas Story.
• Thomas scored 47 points and recorded 17 assists during a 186–184 triple overtime win over the Denver Nuggets on December 13, 1983.
• In Game 6 of the 1988 NBA Finals, Thomas scored 25 points in the third quarter despite a severely sprained ankle, an NBA Finals record.