Quick Facts
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Stephen Dean "Steve" Bardo (born April 5, 1968) is a retired American professional basketball player who had a brief career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is currently a college basketball analyst.
Basketball career
During his standout career at the University of Illinois, 6'5" Bardo scored 909 points and compiled 495 assists. He was part of the Flyin' Illini team that qualified for the 1989 NCAA men's basketball tournament Final Four. That Fighting Illini team gained the moniker "Flyin' Illini" by Dick Vitale while broadcasting a game during the 1988-89 season. Bardo was named Big Ten defensive player of the year in 1989. Along with Bardo, the other starting members of that team included Nick Anderson, Kendall Gill, Lowell Hamilton, Kenny Battle, and key reserve Marcus Liberty.
Bardo was selected in the 1990 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks, but never played for the team, playing one game (one minute) with the San Antonio Spurs during the 1991–92 NBA season. He also appeared for the Dallas Mavericks and Detroit Pistons, amassing 32 more regular season games, and leaving the National Basketball Association with averages of 2 points, 2 rebounds and one assist.
Bardo also played in France, Italy, Japan, Spain, Venezuela overseas as well as the CBA (Quad City, Wichita Falls, Chicago). He enjoyed a 10-year professional playing career.
College stats
| Season | Games | Points | PPG | Assists | APG | Steals | Big Ten Record | Overall Record | Postseason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986–87 | 31 | 119 | 3.7 | 85 | 2.7 | 23 | 1302 !13–2 | 2308 !23–8 | NCAA First Round |
| 1987–88 | 33 | 216 | 6.5 | 125 | 3.8 | 41 | 1107 !11–7 | 2110 !21–10 | NCAA Second Round |
| 1988–89 | 36 | 293 | 8.1 | 148 | 4.4 | 34 | 1404 !14–4 | 3105 !31–5 | NCAA Final Four |
| 1989–90 | 29 | 281 | 9.7 | 137 | 4.7 | 37 | 1107 !11–7 | 2108 !21–8 | NCAA First Round |
| Totals | 129 | 909 | 7.0 | 353 | 3.0 | 203 | 4920 !49–20 | 9631 !96–31 | 4 appearances |
Post-retirement
Since retiring in 2000, Bardo has worked in broadcasting. He has served as a color analyst for the Illini Sports Network, a sports reporter for WBBM-TV in Chicago, an analyst and reporter for CBS Sports, and a color analyst for college basketball on ESPN and Big Ten Network. He has also participated on ESPN First Take. Additionally, he works as a motivational speaker, and authored the book How To Make The League Without Picking Up The Rock.
In May 2015, Bardo, who is African American, publicly criticized the University of Illinois's athletic department over the lack of diversity among prominent head coaches at the university.