Back In The Day NBA

Former No. 2 Pick Details Dreading Getting Selected By Vancouver Grizzlies in 1998

Shandel Richardson

January 4, 2011; Sacramento, CA, USA; Atlanta Hawks point guard Mike Bibby (10) warms up before the game against the Sacramento Kings at ARCO Arena. The Hawks defeated the Kings 108-102. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
January 4, 2011; Sacramento, CA, USA; Atlanta Hawks point guard Mike Bibby (10) warms up before the game against the Sacramento Kings at ARCO Arena. The Hawks defeated the Kings 108-102. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Former NBA player Mike BIbby grew up in Arizona.

He later played for the Arizona Wildcats, leading them to an NCAA championship. In 1998, Bibby was in contention as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft along with Pacific center Michael Olowokandi.

"It was between me and Olowokandi to get draft No. 1," Bibby said on the Club520 podcast with former NBA player Jeff Teague. "I got super agent David Faulk and he's like, `yea, they wanted us to wait until the day of the draft to figure out who they want to pick."'

The teams with the top two picks were the Los Angeles Clippers and Vancouver Grizzlies. A West Coast guy, Bibby obviously hopes for the Clippers.

"I'm 19, I just turned 20," Bibby said. "I got a family. I don't want to move to Canada. I don't want to move to a different country."

Mike Bibby draft story @club520podcast #shorts #jeffteague #clubpodcast520 #vancouver#mikebibby

Posted by Notyouraverage_nba on Thursday, September 5, 2024

Turns out, the Clippers selected Olowakandi at No. 1 He never panned out to his billing while Bibby helped turn the Sacramento Kings into contenders when he was traded after a few seasons with the Grizzlies.

"So I'm looking out the window, it's raining, it's dark, it's snowing," Bibby said. "I told myself, `Just look, I don't want to play here. Nothing against you guys, nothing against the city, the fans.' The team was like, `We gonna pick you any way. I was like, `Damn.' Fifteen minutes later, I was walking around the thing with a Vancouver hat one. It was three years of [expletive]."'

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day Hoops On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com