Biography

Len Bias

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Born
November 18, 1963 · Landover, Maryland, USA
Died
June 19, 1986 · College Park, Maryland, USA (heart failure, due to narcotic intoxication)
Birth name
Leonard Kevin Bias
Height
6′ 8″ (2.03 m)

Considered by many to be one of the greatest college basketball players of the modern era. During the 1985 and 1986 seasons, this unheralded Northwestern High School (Hyattsville, MD) product asserted himself into the forward spot at the University of Maryland. His highlight-reel performances, including his one-man show (30+ points) against North Carolina en route to the first-ever win in the Dean Dome in 1986, made him a player to watch. He was the second pick taken by the Boston Celtics in the 1986 NBA Draft, expected to pick up where a retirement-bound Larry Bird left off. Tragically, that would never come to pass. Three days after being drafted, Bias spent a night partying with friends and snorting cocaine in his University of Maryland dorm room. Overtaken by heart failure, he died shortly after. Bias' death was a shock to the nation, and shed light on substance abuse within the sports arena. The University of Maryland was plunged into the abyss that, thankfully, they have pulled out of. But their success is due in no small part to the one who wore #34.
- IMDb mini biography by: N. Cognito

Len Bias was the only Celtics player to have their number retired without playing a single game. The Celtics retired #30 during a memorial service on June 30, 1986. His mother was given his jersey.
Named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Year in 1985 and 1986.
Many former ACC players and coaches consider Len Bias to be one of the greatest to play in that conference. Bias is part of an unofficial "holy trinity" that includes North Carolina State's David Thompson and University of North Carolina's Michael Jordan.
Inducted into the Washington Metropolitan Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.
Brother of Jay Bias and Eric Bias.

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