<P> The 1984 NBA draft was the 37th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held at the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, on June 19, 1984, before the 1984--85 season . The draft was broadcast in the United States on the USA Network . In this draft, 23 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players . The Houston Rockets won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Portland Trail Blazers, who obtained the Indiana Pacers' first - round pick in a trade, were awarded the second pick . The remaining first - round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win--loss record in the previous season . The Cleveland Cavaliers were awarded an extra first - round draft pick as compensation for the draft picks traded away by their previous owner, Ted Stepien . A player who had finished his four - year college eligibility was automatically eligible for selection . Before the draft, five college underclassmen announced that they would leave college early and would be eligible for selection . Prior to the draft, the San Diego Clippers relocated to Los Angeles and became the Los Angeles Clippers . The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 228 players . This draft was the last to be held before the creation of the draft lottery in 1985 . It was also the first NBA draft to be overseen by David Stern, who'd be the commissioner of the league for the following 30 years . </P> <P> The draft is generally considered to be one of the greatest in NBA history, with four Hall of Famers being drafted in the first sixteen picks and five overall . </P> <P> The Houston Rockets used their first pick to draft Hakeem Olajuwon, a junior center from the University of Houston . The Nigerian - born Olajuwon became the second foreign - born player to be drafted first overall, after Mychal Thompson from the Bahamas in 1978 . The Portland Trail Blazers used the second overall pick to draft Sam Bowie from the University of Kentucky . The Chicago Bulls used the third pick to draft Naismith and Wooden College Player of the Year Michael Jordan from the University of North Carolina . Jordan went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award and was also selected to the All - NBA Second Team in his rookie season . Jordan's teammate at North Carolina, Sam Perkins, was drafted fourth by the Dallas Mavericks . Charles Barkley, a junior forward from Auburn University, was drafted fifth by the Philadelphia 76ers . </P> <P> Olajuwon, Jordan and Barkley, along with the 16th pick John Stockton and the 131st pick Oscar Schmidt, have been inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame . The first four mentioned players were also named in the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History list announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996 . Olajuwon's achievements include two NBA championships, two Finals Most Valuable Player Awards, one Most Valuable Player Award, two Defensive Player of the Year Awards, twelve All - NBA Team selections, twelve All - Star Game selections and nine All - Defensive Team selections . Olajuwon retired as the all--time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830 blocks . The third pick, Jordan, achieved even greater success than Olajuwon . He won six NBA championships, six Finals Most Valuable Player Awards, five Most Valuable Player Awards, one Defensive Player of the Year Award, eleven All - NBA Team selections, fourteen All - Star Game selections, three NBA All Star Game MVP Awards, and nine All - Defensive Team selections . Barkley and Stockton never won an NBA championship, but both players received numerous awards and honors . Barkley won the Most Valuable Player in 1993 and was selected to eleven All - NBA Teams, eleven All - Star Games, and was the MVP of the 1991 All Star Game . Stockton was selected to eleven All - NBA Teams, ten All - Star Games and five All - Defensive Teams before retiring as the all--time league leader in assists and steals and was co-MVP of the 1993 All Star Game along with his Utah Jazz teammate Karl Malone . Jordan, Barkley and Stockton would later play as teammates for the 1992 "Dream Team". Alvin Robertson, the seventh pick, is the only other player from this draft who has won annual NBA awards as a player; he won both the Defensive Player of the Year Award and the Most Improved Player Award in 1986 . He was also selected to one All - NBA Team, four All - Star Games, six consecutive All - Defensive Teams, Two other players from this draft, ninth pick Otis Thorpe and eleventh pick Kevin Willis, were also selected to one All - Star Game each . Willis also had one selection to the All - NBA Team . Rick Carlisle, the 70th pick, became a coach after ending his playing career and won the Coach of the Year Award in 2002 while coaching the Detroit Pistons . In 2011, he coached the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA Championship . </P>

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