Olympic Teammates Are Convinced Alford for Real

Steve Alford, the home-grown All-American who shot the Indiana Hoosiers to an NCAA championship, gives the Indiana Pacers a public relations problem.

Alford, who graduates in May and will marry his high school sweetheart this summer, must wait until the June NBA draft to learn what uniform he’ll wear as a professional.

Local sentiment is strong for the Pacers--needing help at guard and with three players over 30 at the position--to select the 6-2 former Indiana Mr. Basketball from New Castle, a community located 40 miles east of here.

“There’s no doubt drafting Steve would sell more tickets next season,” says Ray Compton, the club’s vice president for marketing. “The impact of a local player can be short term. There is a quick hit, but the history of the NBA shows that a player’s ticket value eventually comes down to how he performs.”

The Pacers, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 1981, will be drafting somewhere between the 10th and 12th place and Alford is likely to be available.

“It’s really difficult to say what we’ll do about Steve,” said General Manager Donnie Walsh, who was booed last year when he made Chuck Person--now a leading candidate for rookie honors--the club’s top pick. “We’re going to take the best player available when we select. Steve is under consideration. He’s been an outstanding college player and we have to draft on the basis of team needs and professional potential.”

Alford finished his career with a championship ring and was one point short of the Big Ten Conference career-scoring record. But some say he is too slow, too short and lacks the defensive ability to play in the NBA.

Assistant coach Mel Daniels, who spent most of the season scouting colleges, is one of those who questions Alford’s potential.

“Alford’s offensive abilities are obvious,” he said. “He can shoot, and he can create shots for himself and scoring opportunities for his teammates. But his defensive problems are obvious, too, and I’m just not sure he rates as high in the first round as we’re going to be drafting.”

However, Alford’s teammates on the gold-medal U.S. Olympic team left Los Angeles convinced his credentials were authentic.

NBA scoring leader Michael Jordan helped Indiana Coach Bob Knight and his star guard earn the Olympic gold and also owes Alford $100 for a bet. He and three members of the Pacers also predict success for him in the NBA.

” With his shooting ability and his smarts, I think he can play in the NBA,” said Jordan, who was Alford’s Olympic teammate.

“I owe him $100 right now because I told him I never thought he’d stay four years with Bobby Knight. I’m looking forward to paying him and offering him my congratulations.”

“He’s a very smart player. I think he’s going to have a great NBA career,” says Pacers’ forward Wayman Tisdale, another member of the Olympic squad. “It really depends on which team he gets with, if they’re going to use him the way his game is. I think he’s a very good player and if he can go through four years with Bobby Knight, hey, I love the guy.”