Suns Legend Joins Isiah Thomas in Best Chicago Player Outpour

Some NBA veterans are ringing in the New Year with some fun nostalgia. Isiah Thomas reminisced about the start of his NBA career alongside his best friend, Mark Aguirre. They were each other’s first teammates and rivals long before they were NBA stars. They were both 1981 draft picks, though they started with different teams. Aguirre and Zeke were teammates once more and went on to win the 1989 and 1990 championships with the Detroit Pistons.

This is still a partnership that remains iconic. That’s why NBA pro-turned-analyst, Eddie Johnson, who also grew up with the two Chicago legends, chimed in.

It started with a throwback post that read, “1981, Two Chicagoans, DePaul’s Mark Aguirre, left, and Isiah Thomas of Indiana were the first two players picked yesterday in the NBA draft. @dallasmavs chose Aguirre and @DetroitPistons picked Thomas.” 

Zeke quoted it with an addition of his own. “Let it be known from the west side of Chicago first time in @NBAHistory two kids from the same neighborhood went 1-2 in the @nba draft, went on to win BACK to BACK championships @DetroitPistons #BadBoys.”

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Former Suns player, Eddie Johnson, wrote, “And could have gone straight to NBA from High School. Best 2 Chicagoland players ever.”

This trio were rivals during their NBA careers at one point. But shared the most mutual respect from the days they were young athletes growing up in Chi-Town.

Isiah Thomas’ Windy City connections

Isiah Thomas grew up in the West Side and played at St. Joseph High School. His friend, Mark Aguirre transferred from Austin High School to George Westinghouse College Prep where Eddie Johnson was also on the team. All three went to different colleges before ending up in the NBA after getting selected by different teams.

In 1989, Johnson was named NBA Sixth Man of the Year. That year, the Bad Boy Pistons had Aguirre in their ranks. The childhood friends won the championship and Zeke completely credits this to his friend. “We never would’ve won a championship if Mark Aquirre doesn’t come to our team,” he said once. He credited Thomas for having the discernment to push Dennis Rodman to play in his stead. Thomas said if it wasn’t for Aguirre’s sacrifice, they’d never have taken the 1989 title.

Aguirre has kept a low profile in his post-NBA life. Meanwhile, Thomas and Johnson are thriving in their second acts and also hyping each other up. What do you think about Johnson and Thomas’ claims about Mark Aquirre?

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