Warriors choose Chris Mullin from San Giovanni in 1985

For the first time in five years, the Golden State Warriors will not prepare for a run in the NBA finals. The worst 15-50 warriors in the league are one of eight teams that Orlando will not be destined to restart the NBA. Instead, Warriors will have an extended offseason to prepare for the NBA Draft.

For the first time since 2002, Golden State will have the opportunity to make a selection from the top five on the day of the draw. With months on the calendar until the October draft, Warriors Wire rewinds through the draft of the Golden State story to highlight the most memorable selections: exchanges, surprises, busts, sleepers and all the rest.

In 1985, the Golden State Warriors brought a future Hall of Famer into the top 10.

June 18 1985

To begin the 1985 edition of the draft, the New York Knicks selected the powerful striker Patrick Ewing from Georgetown with the best choice. After six players left the board, the Golden State Warriors were in service.

After ending the 1984-85 season with a record of 22-80, Johnny Bach’s Warriors desperately needed some firepower to mate with Purvis Short and Sleepy Floyd. With choice no. 7 overall, the director general of Golden State Al Attles landed Chris Mullin from St. John’s University.

Mullin recorded a decorated university campaign, earning the Big East Player of the Year and nodding to the All-American Team three times in four years. In his last season at St. John’s, Mullin ended his career in Red Storm with an average of 19.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

As a senior, Mullin teamed up with future Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson to lead St. Johns to the Final Four in the 1985 NCAA tournament.

As a beginner, Mullin started 30 games, averaging 14 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals in 25.3 minutes per game. In his second year with Golden State, Mullin and Joe Berry Carroll helped push the Warriors into a playoff offer. George Karl’s warriors advanced to the second round of the Western Conference post-congress before being eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers.

In 13 seasons in the Bay Area, Mullin has earned five trips to the NBA All-Star Game. After his retirement in 2001, the two-time Olympic gold medalist became a member of the 2011 class for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

Being one of the six players to collect his number with the franchise, Mullin’s number 17 hangs on the beams of the San Francisco Chase Center.

Along with Ewing and Mullin, other important members of the 1985 draft included Karl Malone of LSU, Joe Dumars of McNeese State, Charles Oakley of Virginia Union and Detlef Schrempf of Washington.