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      Mark Price

      Born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, in 1965, Brad Daugherty grew into a seven-foot frame that was destined for the hardwood. Daugherty excelled at basketball while playing at Charles D. Owen High School. With Daugherty’s leadership on the court, his high school team reached the 1982 State Finals before losing in the championship game.

      Daugherty was a top recruit later that year for Dean Smith and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Tar Heels, and he would be remembered as one of the few players to play for a Hall of Fame coach in both college and then the pros. Many considered Daugherty to be one of the best centers to ever play for UNC. He was a two-time All-ACC first-team selection and a first-team All-American in his senior season, during which he averaged more than 20 points a game. Based on his impressive college basketball career, Daugherty was later inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.

      Joining Daugherty on the Cavaliers that year was fellow first-round draft pick Ron Harper, who had been a collegiate All-Star and drew many comparisons to Julius Erving for his high-flying style. Harper was a two-time MAC player of the year and made the NCAA All-American second team in his senior season. He immediately showed that Embry’s faith in him was warranted, averaging more than 22 points a game in his rookie season. Harper was voted second for the Rookie of the Year to Indiana Pacer Chuck Person.

      Mark Price was the player in charge of keeping things running smoothly. A fellow first-round pick of the Dallas Mavericks, he was the perfect man to lead the charge. Price had grown up in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where he attended Enid High School. After graduation, he went to play college basketball at Georgia Tech and, with hard work and court savvy, he managed to establish himself as the leader of the team. He was a two-time All-American and the recipient of All-ACC honors for all four years of his college career. In the 1984–85 ACC championship game, he led his team to a win over UNC and his future teammate, Brad Daugherty. He was also named ACC player of the year. Price’s jersey number at Georgia Tech was retired in acknowledgment of his great college career.

      Joining forces with the top three draft picks was Cavaliers 1985 draft pick John “Hot Rod” Williams. Legal problems forced him to sit out his rookie season after being selected by Cleveland in the draft. He’d had a solid career at Tulane University and under Embry, and the Cavaliers were willing to look past his somewhat checkered past and place him full into the fold. Former teammate Larry Nance disclosed how it was to play with “Hot Rod”: “He was very underrated as one of the best low-post defensive players that have ever been around. He was a great defensive guy and also a great friend. Once you’re his friend, he will do anything in the world for you. We became great friends and we still talk today.”

      Midway through the 1986–87 season, Embry decided to sign free agent guard Craig Ehlo. Ehlo reflected on growing up learning the game:

      There was only one game a week on television when I was growing up, so I didn’t really have any one athlete I molded myself after. The most influential person in my life who helped me with basketball was my high school coach Joe Mahaga at Monterey. He was influential in teaching me the fundamentals of the game. He taught us a continuity-type offense, where we would pass the ball about six times before we got anything to look at shot wise. I was blessed in that area because he was determined to teach us the strict fundamentals and the teamwork part of the game, which helped me develop as a player. I wasn’t a very big kid in high school at 6-foot 4-inches tall, so I had to find ways to perform well with using my size against larger opponents. My junior college coach, Ron Mayberry, was also very influential in helping me develop every aspect of my game. I was built to be a swing-type player because I could handle the ball and shoot the ball well at my size.

      Ehlo attended Odessa College and Washington State after that. He reflected on that time in his life and his basketball career:

      My high school team made it to the regional championships in Texas, and I was lucky enough to lead my team in scoring. However, I think my size may have deterred any school from recruiting me. I didn’t have a lot of offers out of high school, even though my team was successful. I did have a few accolades such as being All-State and things like that. I just chose junior college because it was a better avenue for me and close to my home in Lubbock, Texas. I went down there for two years and that was a big part of my life because I was able to put on some more weight. It allowed me to play more and get better as I played 36 games my freshman year and 31 my sophomore year. I was able to average about 24 points a game my sophomore year with 6 rebounds a game and 7 assists. I think that is what caught the attention of several schools.

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