50 greatest NBA players from the 1990s — 25. Mark Price
Mark Price entered the 1990s off his first All-Star selection with the Cleveland Cavaliers, heavy stuff for a player acquired on draft night in 1986 for a second-round pick in 1989 after going in the second round to the Dallas Mavericks.
Price was a three-time All-Star in the 1990s for the Cavs and a three-time All-NBA pick. He led the league in free-throw percentage in both 1991-92 (.947) and 1992-93 (.948) and was second in 3-pointers in 1989-90.
In September 1995, Price was traded to the Washington Bullets for a first-round pick in 1996.
In six seasons with Cleveland in the 1990s, Price averaged 17.7 points, eight assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 32.1 minutes per game, shooting .469/.401/.918.
Injured for all but seven games in 1995-96, Price averaged just eight points, 2.6 assists and a rebound in 18.1 minutes per game for the Bullets, shooting .300/.333/10-for-10.
He signed with the Golden State Warriors as a free agent in July 1996 and led the league in free-throw shooting again at .906 as a part-time starter, averaging 11.3 points, 4.9 assists, 2.6 rebounds and a steal in 26.8 minutes per game while shooting .447/.396/.906.
In October 1997, the Warriors traded Price to the Orlando Magic for Brian Shaw and David Vaughn.
In one last season, Price averaged 9.5 points, 4.7 assists and two rebounds in 22.7 minutes per game, shooting .431/.335/.845.
Waived by the Magic in June 1998, Price opted to retire.
In the decade, Price was 17th with 3,550 assists, 20th with 788 3-pointers, 14th with an average of 7.1 assists per game and second with a .913 free-throw percentage.
He is 27th in NBA history with a .402 3-point percentage, second with a .904 free-throw percentage and 30th with an average of 6.7 assists per game.
After eight seasons as an NBA assistant coach, Price was hired in March to head to the collegiate ranks at Charlotte as that program’s head coach.