Bailey Named as 2011 ACC Basketball Legend
1/25/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2011
RALEIGH, N.C. -
Complete ACC Release
NC State great Thurl Bailey was announced as a member of the 2011 ACC Basketball Tournament Legends Class today by the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Legends will be honored at this year’s ACC’s Men’s Basketball Tournament in Greensboro, N. C., March 10-13. They will be feted at the annual ACC Legends Brunch, which will be held Saturday, March 12, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Sheraton Four Seasons Hotel, and, later that day, will be introduced to the Greensboro Coliseum crowd at halftime of the first semifinal game. Ticket information for the ACC Legends Brunch is available on the ACC website at theACC.com.
Bailey (1980-83) lettered four seasons for NC State, starting the last three under Coach Jim Valvano. A 6-11 power forward, Bailey helped the Wolfpack to three NCAA Tournament appearances and a four-year record of 82-41. A first-team All-ACC selection in 1983, he earned 2nd-team honors in 1982.
He led State in scoring and rebounding for three consecutive seasons (1981-83). An accomplished shot blocker, Bailey had 207 blocks in his career, which still ranks 23rd on the ACC career list.
As a senior, he helped lead NC State’s Cardiac Pack to a Cinderella season as the Wolfpack finished 26-10. That year State won its final 10 games, many of them in the last seconds to capture the ACC Championship and the NCAA title over Houston in one of the NCAA Tournaments greatest upsets. That year, he was named to the NCAA All-Final Four Team.
A first-round choice of the Utah Jazz in the 1983 NBA Draft, Bailey enjoyed a 12-year NBA career with the Jazz and Minnesota Timberwolves and also played four years professionally overseas. Originally a native of Seat Pleasant, Md., he now resides in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he is an analyst on the Utah Jazz radio network.