The wild roller coaster basketball journey of Isiah Thomas

Isiah Thomas is a Hall of Famer NBA player who has also coached and worked in the front office. He's been connected to the game in almost every possible way.

Thomas is one of the best point guards in NBA history. In addition to being a great scorer as a shorter player, Thomas is also revered as one of the most fierce competitors ever. He would do almost anything to ensure that his team got the victory. We’ll reminisce about his playing days and what life had in store for him after he retired. All statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

Isiah Lord Thomas III was born in 1961 in Chicago. His family had very little to their name according to NBA.com, and Thomas saw what type of work ethic it would take to get out of poverty.

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In freezing temperatures, Thomas would be seen and heard dribbling his basketball around his Chicago neighborhood, which helped develop the elite handling he would bring to the NBA.

Thomas had made a name for himself in recruiting circles, but decided to play at Indiana University for legendary coach Bob Knight. As a freshman, Thomas handled Knight’s notoriously intense demeanor as he averaged over 14 points per game. As a sophomore, he led the Hoosiers to a national title.

The Pistons selected Thomas with the second pick in the 1981 NBA Draft, and they had a star from day one. The former Indiana guard would make the All-Star team in each of his first 12 seasons in the league. He led a Pistons team that was one of the highest-scoring teams in the league for much of the eighties.

Detroit elected to change the style of play in the late 1980’s, which helped them become a better team. They focused on playing hard-nosed defense that intimidated other teams.

The philosophy shift worked, as Detroit won two titles in back-to-back seasons in 1989 and 1990. Thomas battled through injuries in the NBA Finals to help secure those rings.

Thomas told The New York Times during the title run, "Most great teams reach a certain level and become satisfied. So we've instituted some private things, whether you'd call them team rules or just mental attitudes, that will help prevent us from self destructing."

As the mid 1990’s approached, the Pistons’ key pieces from their glory days were getting older. The organization was looking to rebuild, and Thomas did not want to endure losing seasons to get back to the top of the mountain.

He would call it a career after the end of the 1993-1994 season, finishing with career averages of 19 points and nine assists per game.

The expansion Toronto Raptors wanted credible basketball names working for the team, and they hired Thomas as Executive Vice President ahead of their first season in 1995. Thomas made the first draft pick in franchise history, nabbing guard Damon Stoudamire. The former player would spend about three years in the role.

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Thomas would continue his basketball journey with the Pacers, taking over as head coach before the 2000-2001 season. He remained in that position for three years, and Indiana won more games every year. Despite their decent regular season records, the Pacers were not able to get out of the first round of the postseason.

The New York Knicks fell on hard times in the mid 2000’s, and Thomas is one of the faces of that tumultuous era. He coached the team to a combined 56-108 record in two seasons, and made numerous decisions as general manager that did not pan out.

Some of those moves included trading for Malik Rose, Eddy Curry and Jalen Rose, who were not going to be centerpieces of a winning ballclub at that point, or any point, of their careers. He also hired Larry Brown to coach the team in 2005-2006, who went 23-59 in his only campaign at the helm.

In addition to the struggles the team had on the floor, Thomas also had personal and legal hurdles as an executive with the Knicks. His name came up several times in a sexual harassment lawsuit Anucha Browne Sanders filed against the Garden and Cablevision.

He also needed medical attention after ingesting 10 sleeping pills at his home in Westchester according to the NY Daily News.

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Isiah Thomas began 2024 by criticizing Delta Air Lines in a tweet. He apologized to "all of his fans" who expected to see him on NBATV studio coverage on January 1 2024, and went on to call Delta Air Lines incompetent and disrespectful for not allowing him to board his flight. Thomas claimed he had a paid seat and a seat assignment.