But what Thomas was really getting tired of was The Iceman’s stories about this “cracker box” of a gym on Detroit’s west side, where Gervin, a legend in those parts, was king among the lot of NBA vets, college stars, high school standouts and streetball legends who played there every summer. “All I wanted to do was get back to Detroit,” said Thomas, who grew up in Illinois, played collegiately at Indiana and had just been selected second overall by the Detroit Pistons in the ’81 NBA Draft. “Gervin would tell his stories, and all I wanted to do was get away from George Gervin and find St. Cecilia’s.”