ex-Badger basketball great Michael Finely will represent the Dallas Mavericks at the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery
The 2017 NBA Draft Lottery will take place on Tuesday night with a cascade of ping-pong balls determining the future outlook for talent-needy NBA teams. If you’re a fan of The Hunger Games or Shirley Jackson you know all about the lottery. If not, visit our friends at the fantastically-named Smoking Cuban Mavericks blog for more details.
The Dallas Mavericks have selected its “assistant vice president of basketball operations,” Michael Finley, a former Wisconsin Badger basketball great, to be its lottery representative. Dallas struggled mightily last season finishing 33-49, and 11th place in the Western Conference.
The Mavs “have an 81.3 percent chance of staying at the No. 9 pick” according to an optimistic article on its website.
The Mavericks only hold a 1.7 percent chance of garnering the #1 overall pick.
"The draft begins at 8 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN and WatchESPN. The NBA draft will be held on June 22."
During his time at Wisconsin, Finley helped the Badgers make its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 47 years. He was twice named First Team All-Big Ten and three times an AP All American honorable mention. Finely is currently the 8th leading scorer in Big Ten basketball history.
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As Badger of Honor reported a few years ago, Finley came back to Madison to earn his degree.
"The 6-foot-7 small forward left for the NBA as the Badgers’ all-time leading scorer with 2,147 points from 1991-95."
He was eventually surpassed by Alando Tucker, but Finley is still the second leading scorer in Wisconsin basketball history. According to the UW Athletic Department, Finley was ranked “first or second in six different UW career statistical categories” by the end of his time in Madison.
Finley was the 21st pick of the 1995 NBA Draft,selected by the Phoenix Suns that season. His Wisconsin teammate Rashard Griffith was a picked at #38 early in round two by the Milwaukee Bucks. Finley was named to the NBA All-Rookie team following the 1995-96 season and later became a two-time NBA All Star.
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He was also robbed of the 1996 NBA Dunk Contest crown by Brent Barry of all people.
He played 15 seasons in the NBA, making the playoffs 10 times and winning a championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2007. For his career, Finley averaged 15.7 Points/game, 4.4 Rebounds/game, and 2.9 Assists/game. He averaged more than 18 Points/game during a seven-year stretch from the 1997-98 season through the 2003-04 season.
Off the court, Finley established the Michael Finley Foundation in 2003 to help children and families in Texas.
"The Michael Finley Foundation is dedicated to inspire, develop, and enhance the skills in our youth and their families. The ultimate goal is to instill confidence, enabling them to achieve their personal and professional aspirations."
In 2011, Finely endowed an annual scholarship at the University of Wisconsin to benefit African-American student athletes.
Good luck to Finely and the Mavericks tonight. I wouldn’t hate it if he wore a UW lapel pin or something to give Greg Gard an assist in promoting the program.