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Maryland Basketball: Top 10 NBA draft picks

By Chris Bengel

Feb 13, 2016; College Park, MD, USA; A general view of the Cole Field House center court prior to the game between the Maryland Terrapins and the Wisconsin Badgers at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 13, 2016; College Park, MD, USA; A general view of the Cole Field House center court prior to the game between the Maryland Terrapins and the Wisconsin Badgers at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 30, 2015; Spokane, WA, USA; Maryland Terrapins mascot, Testudo, waves the school flag before a game against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers during the first half in the finals of the Spokane regional of the 2015 women
Mar 30, 2015; Spokane, WA, USA; Maryland Terrapins mascot, Testudo, waves the school flag before a game against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers during the first half in the finals of the Spokane regional of the 2015 women /

No. 10 Len Bias

Len Bias could be categorized as one of the greatest players to ever come through the program. Bias came to College Park as a very raw prospect that had a lot of growing up to do. The Northwestern (Md.) product put up very pedestrian numbers as a freshman as he averaged 7.2 points and 4.2 rebounds.

Bias really took his game up to the next level as a sophomore as he nearly doubled his average up to 15.3 points. During his junior and senior seasons at Maryland, Bias earned ACC Player of the Year honors and was a First Team Consensus All-American in 1986 as a senior.

After a sensational four-year career with the Terps, Bias was the talk of the basketball world heading into the 1986 NBA Draft. The Cleveland Cavaliers took North Carolina center Brad Daugherty with the top pick. Bias went No. 2 to the Boston Celtics and this was a pick that was three years in the making for general manager Red Auerbach. Bias was set to take the NBA by storm until tragedy struck.

The former Maryland star passed away due to a cocaine overdose just two days after the 1986 Draft. While Bias never stepped foot on an NBA court, he still has his place on the list. This was arguably the greatest player in the history of the Maryland program and could’ve been one of the all-time greats at the professional level if not for a horrifically bad mistake.

Next: One of the early stars of the Lefty era