teamed Stipanovich, with Herb Williams and Clark Kellogg, their first-round pick in 1982. Stipanovich averaged 12.0 points and 6.9 rebounds en route to earning NBA All-Rookie Team honors in 1983–84 under coach George Irvine. "Stipo" would remain a fixture in the Pacers' starting lineup the next five seasons. From 1984–88, Stipanovich averaged 13 points and 6 rebounds, while starting 292 of his 322 games. Stipanovich scored at least 20 points in 62 times and never missed more than three games in his five years. On October 20, 1985, Stipanovich and Patrick Ewing of the New York Knicks were involved in a scuffle that left Ewing with an injured elbow and his arm in a sling. Ewing had elbowed Stipanovich in the face. Later, Stipanovich threw Ewing to the floor and jumped on him. Both team benches emptied, and the two had to be restrained from going after one another again. Ewing was fined $1500 and Stipanovich $750. Both were fined $250 for being ejected. After four consecutive last–place finishes in 1983–1986, the Pacers made the 1987 NBA playoffs, with a 41–41 record. Stipanovich averaged 13.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks under new coach Jack Ramsey. Playing alongside Chuck Person, Waymon Tisdale, Herb Williams, Clark Kellogg, Vern Fleming and John Long, it was the franchise's second postseason appearance since merging into the NBA in 1976. Stipanovich scored a team-high 22 points with 13 rebounds in a Game 1 loss at the Atlanta Hawks. He averaged 13.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in the series, as the Pacers won their first ever NBA playoff game in Game 3, but ultimately lost the series in four games. Stipanovich played only one more season after the playoff trip, as the Pacers finished 38–44 in 1987–1988, with Stipanovich averaging 13.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals, playing 80 games in his final season. Stipanovich missed the entire 1988–89 campaign due to a degenerative knee condition that didn't improve after surgery in November 1988. At the time, then Pacers General Manager Donnie Walsh called him the "fifth or sixth-best center in the league" and praised him for "holding his own against the best". Stipanovich was forced to retire in 1989, at age 28, due to a dead spot in the bone of his left knee. Stipanovich said the injury was so bad he "can't even cut the grass". For his