NBA Has Private Eyes Looking Into the Lives of Top College Prospects

Research and development can prove to be very costly to a company whether it is in the laboratories of California’s Silicon Valley or on the hardwood courts of the National Basketball Assn.

In the early 1980’s, IBM came out with its heralded PCjr--the new personal computer for the masses. Millions of dollars went into R&D; only to have the product become the Edsel of the computer industry.

Likewise, the NBA has had its failures, but no more costly then in the first round of the 1986 draft. Three of the draft’s top six picks became involved with drugs and never developed into the stars the team anticipated.

Len Bias, taken second by the Boston Celtics, died of a cocaine overdose shortly after the draft.

Chris Washburn, the third player chosen, went into drug rehabilitation during his first season with the Golden State Warriors. Three years later, he’s a bench warmer for the Atlanta Hawks.

William Bedford, the draft’s sixth pick by Phoenix, was eventually traded to Detroit.

To monitor its investment in the development of high-cost, but young, players, the NBA has turned to the services of private investigators.

“I think the 1986 draft woke up a lot of teams,” said Bob Woolf, one of the nation’s leading sports attorneys. “They are now taking a good look at more than just a player’s talent. They realize they are going to be paying these players seven figures and want to get their money’s worth.”

Most NBA teams want to avoid the kind of sitiuation the Warriors found themselves in with Washburn. The 6-10 center-forward was in and out of trouble in college before turning pro after just his sophomore season at North Carolina State.

However, Golden State executives decided that Washburn’s potential far outstripped any future problems. They were wrong. In his rookie season, Washburn averaged just 10 minutes of playing time a game and 3.4 points a contest. He also missed six weeks of the season in drug rehabilitation.

The price tag for the Warriors was steep--Washburn was paid $700,000 and his failure to develop forced the club to undertake a massive facelift this season. They traded away Eric (Sleepy) Floyd, Joe Barry Carroll, Purvis Short and Washburn for what they hope is a better future.

The Warriors also had to pay his rehabilitation bill which likely cost over $25,000.

“I think drafting Chris Washburn proved to be a major mistake,” said George Karl, in an interview televised shortly after he resigned as the Warriors head coach earlier this season. “I think if we would have made a pick that year who would have developed, things may have been different.”

Many NBA teams have turned Paul Chamberlain International, one of the nation’s best private investigation firms, to make sure they do not waste a draft pick. Last year, the firm investigated 16 of the draft’s top 20 picks.

“We don’t evaluate talent,” said Dan Sullivan, Chamberlain vice president and a former deputy chief with the Los Angeles Police Department.

“What we look into is what kind of person these players are. What is their work ethic? Does he have a drug problem? What is his lifestyle? It’s amazing what you can tell about a person just from his car.

“We also look to see if there is anything to indicate how he will handle life in the fast lane.”

The firm’s expertise may be needed more this year than in past seasons.

“There are a lot of project type players in this year’s draft,” Woolf said. “It will take a lot of these guys 2 or 3 years before they become top notch players. If you are going to be pay a player large sums of money, you certainly want to know if he has the traits to make it pay off down the road.”

Chamberlain, which has offices in Beverly Hills, New York and London, works primarily with Lloyd’s of London on kidnap, ransom and extortion cases. However, the firm got into sports unexpectedly three years ago.

“We have some close personal ties to Loyola Marymount and got coach Paul Westhead (former Laker and Chicago Bull coach) to introduce us to the league’s general managers,” Sullivan said. “Our business in this area has been growing ever since.”

The firm checks out a player completely before reporting to the team.

“All our cases are done covertly,” Sullivan said. “We may interview a player’s girlfriend without her even knowing she’s being interviewed. We’re all ex-narcs or FBI special agents. If they are hiding something, we’ll find it.”