Loyola`s Alfredrick Hughes and De Paul`s Tyrone Corbin both landed with the San Antonio Spurs in Tuesday`s National Basketball Association draft. For Hughes it was a day of indescribable joy, but for Corbin it was an afternoon of agony–and then relief.
Hughes expected to be picked in the first round, about 21st or 22d overall. Instead, he was caught by surprise when the Spurs selected him 14th. Sitting in the front row of a packed auditorium at the Hyatt Regency Chicago, Hughes rose to his feet and covered his face with his hands when the announcement was made. The crowd cheered, and the 6-foot-5-inch Robeson High School graduate quickly was surrounded by a crush of well-wishers and television lights.
When Hughes finally was able to free himself from the mob, his white pin- striped suit was smeared with pink lipstick from those who had added kisses to their congratulations. His face was glowing.
With that one announcement, the disappointment of not being picked to try out for the 1984 Olympic team was gone. So was the pain of those early years at Loyola when fans sometimes harassed him for shooting too often.
”When they said 14, I couldn`t believe it. I was shocked,” said Hughes, who averaged 26.3 points a game his senior year, second in the country.
”Philadelphia (which had expressed interest in Hughes) was picking 21st, and I was pretty set with that. But the important thing isn`t the number. No matter what team picks you, you have to go work hard and make the team. I`m confident I can stay in the league. I`ve always had confidence in myself, but I didn`t realize these people had that kind of confidence in me.”
Hughes was encouraged to turn pro after his junior year but decided to stay in school and fulfill a promise he had made to his mother, Ruth, who died of cancer two years ago. The decision turned out to be a good one.
”It`s a great thing for him (being picked so high),” said Loyola coach Gene Sullivan. ”He gambled by staying with us last year when he could have gone in the second round. But he stayed and did a lot for Loyola, and we`re very proud of him. He had a good year and made a big name for himself, and fortunately, we won enough at the end of the year to get him some national attention.”
Meanwhile, Corbin, who also had hoped to be selected in the first round, waited for hours for his name to be called. The wait became agonizing as the final teams announced their first-round picks while Corbin stood in the back of the auditorium surrounded by television cameras.
Each time another team was ready to make its pick, the camera lights were turned on Corbin. And each time he was passed over, the lights went out and the wait went on.
As the first round ended, the cameras left Corbin alone, but the fans didn`t. De Paul`s leading scorer and rebounder as a junior and senior patiently signed a stream of autographs. ”It`s not over yet,” he told a friend who offered moral support and a hug.
Then, midway through the second round, the Spurs selected the 6-6 forward. He was the 35th player taken overall. His De Paul teammate, 6-2 guard Kenny Patterson, was selected by Indiana at the start of the third round. Boston took Loyola`s Andre Battle at the end of the third round.
Corbin had been flown to Los Angeles as a guest of the Lakers for the fourth game of the NBA finals. He had expected L.A. to take him at the end of the first round. Instead, the Lakers chose A.C. Green, a forward from Oregon State.
”After they didn`t pick me, I thought anything could happen,” said Corbin. ”It was a mild disappointment. But it`s not really a letdown. It`s the NBA draft, and you have to be happy to be drafted. There are a lot of people who`d like to be in my position.”
Hughes and Corbin have battled each other in Chicago for four years. Corbin said they never expected to be drafted by the same team. But the Spurs had made room for a small forward or shooting guard with a last-minute trade of 6-7 forward Gene Banks to Chicago for 6-10 forward Steve Johnson and a second-round pick.
”I`ve gone up against him (Hughes) before, and we`ll just have to battle for the job,” said Corbin. ”He`s a cool guy and a hard worker.”
Spurs` general manager Bob Bass said that Hughes ”could give us that big-time scorer. He`s got a bull-type body like Calvin Natt (of the Denver Nuggets).” Bass added that Hughes will play small forward if he makes the team.
San Antonio surprised many people by taking Hughes so early, generating speculation that the club had drafted him to set up another trade. Not so, said Bass. ”We have no interest in trading Hughes. We`ve taken the approach we`re not going to let anyone take our players.”
