A memorable event was the 1986 NBA draft for me, here is something I found on it.
1986
Darkest Day in Draft History
Some drafts are good, many bad, but the realm of judgment is usually confined to the court. The 1986 NBA Draft changed all that - the tragedy and misfortune that struck so many of the names below would be hard for even Hollywood to hatch. From the early deaths of Len Bias and Drazen Petrovic to the drug-addicted failures of Roy Tarpley, Chris Wasburn and William Bedford, the 1986 NBA Draft will live in infamy and as a sad lesson that simply getting drafted doesn't mean you've made it.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers: Brad Daugherty, C, North Carolina
2. Boston Celtics: Len Bias, SF, Maryland
3. Golden State Warriors: Chris Washburn, C, NC State
4. Indiana Pacers: Chuck Person, SF, Auburn
5. New York Knicks: Kenny Walker, SF/PF, Kentucky
6. Phoenix Suns: William Bedford, C, Memphis State
7. Dallas Mavericks: Roy Tarpley, C/PF, Michigan
8. Cleveland: Ron Harper, SG, Miami (OH)
9. Chicago Bulls: Brad Sellers, C/PF, Ohio State
10. San Antonio Spurs: Johnny Dawkins, PG, Duke
11. Detroit Pistons: John Salley, C/PF, Georgia Tech
12. Washington Bullets: John Williams, PF, LSU
13. New Jersey Nets: Dwayne Washington, PG, Syracuse
14. Portland Trailblazers: Walter Berry, SF, St John's
15. Utah Jazz: Dell Curry, SG, Virgina Tech
16. Denver Nuggets: Maurice Martin, SG, Saint Joseph's
17. Sacramento Kings: Harold Pressley, SF, Villanova
18. Denver: Mark Alarie, SF, Duke
19. Atlanta Hawks: Billy Thompson, SF, Louisville
20. Houston Rockets: Buck Johnson, SF, Alabama
21. Washington: Anthony Jones, SG, UNLV
22. Milwaukee Bucks: Scott Skiles, PG, Michigan State
23. L.A. Lakers: Ken Barlow, PF, Notre Dame
24. Portland: Arvydas Sabonis, C, Soviet Union
Other Notable Picks:
(2) 25. Dallas: Mark Price, PG, Georgia Tech
(2) 27. Detroit: Dennis Rodman, PF, Southeast Oklahoma State
(2) 29. Cleveland: Johnny Newman, SF, Richmond
(2) 30. Seattle Sonics: Nate McMillan, PG, NC State
(2) 33. Portland: Kevin Duckworth, C, Eastern Illinois
(2) 46. Phoenix: Jeff Hornacek, SG, Iowa State
(3) 60. Portland: Drazen Petrovic, SG, Yugoslavia
Best Pick: Dennis Rodman won five NBA titles, two Defensive Player of the Year awards and led the NBA in rebounding seven times. The Pistons had the foresight to recognize the unusual Rodman, who four years earlier stood 6-foot and was mopping airport floors, could translate his small college game to the NBA, and they got the future Hall of Famer in the Second Round, as well.
Worst Pick: It didn't take a behavioral psychologist to see that Chris Washburn was an immature and spiritless failure in the making. The Warriors saw a 7-footer with great athleticism and huge potential and took the bait (Washburn) with the No. 3 pick. Washburn scored 222 points in two NBA seasons (only one with Golden State), reportedly entered a game with his shoelaces untied and was banned from the NBA for life in 1989 after failing a third drug test.
Most Pivotal Pick: The death of Len Bias less than 48 hours after being drafted by the Celtics with the No. 2 pick is a blow that Boston still hasn't recovered from. His selection was a no-brainer: Bias was the most talented player in the Draft and was the franchise player in waiting for when Larry Bird got too old to carry the C's anymore. The Celtics had just won the NBA Championship 10 days earlier - they haven't won one since - and the franchise has seen enough misfortune since to give some the evidence that it's all tied to Bias' death. The reality is that no player in this Draft would ever realize the potential of Bias, and no franchise players ever materialized. But his death still is haunting, especially when you consider that Bias would be 40 years old today had he lived and especially when you dream up the stats and awards he could have racked up in that lost time.
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Biggest Sleeper: We can't blame anyone for passing on Jeff Hornacek in the first 45 picks - we wouldn't be enamored either with a guy who averaged 10.7 points at Iowa State. But the Suns saw something in the combination guard and we're guessing it was his deadly accurate, yet sorely underused shooting stroke. Hornacek would go on to amass over 15,000 points at three NBA stops, shooting at a 49.6% clip from the field and 87.7% from the line.
http://probasketball.about.com/od/nbadrafthistory/a/1986NBADraft.htm