I think brent barry should be added as well. he was supposed to be the that guy we could use off the bench could spread the floor and shoot the 3. he wasnt effective at any of these areas.
Excellent post. Ralph was never going to be a Wilt Chamberlain, and while most don't remember, that really was the unrealistic expectation of a lot of people, many in the media. You mention his lack of that personality, and there's no question that Ralph wasn't as innately driven as Wilt, or as driven as Akeem. The game was too easy for him before getting into the league, and he let that affect him. How he would have developed mentally in his approach to the game (over time), we'll never know, of course. What I was thinking was more along the physical line. He was a stick, like Kevin Durant, except 7'4". I wish he'd had access to the medical/training techniques available today. That, and some luck. Your right. Olajuwon was destined to be the best center on the Rockets. Ralph may not have been happy with it, but it was a given, IMO, once Dream stepped on the court and started to play. Sampson might have had a career similar to Kareem, but it wouldn't have been with the Rockets as a center, not with, as you point out, Dream not having the skills to play away from the basket early in his career. Had he stayed with the Rockets, and stayed healthy, Ralph would have carved out a unique career as a 4/5. He really played well with Dream. The Twin Towers worked.
JVG was definitely my top choice for most disappointing coach- He expected for everyone to play like robots(this is actually why him and Stevie never got along), slowed the game to a crawl, hinder young players, tried to pound square pegs in round holes, and ran the same play over and over and over(too predictable, as to where the other team knew what play was coming before we did). Player wise definitely goes to Tracy "fools gold" Mcgrady. Yes the guy that was brought here to take the Rockets to a new level, which we actually stayed at that same level until he was in street clothes. The guy that was hailed a scoring champ and eventually received the nickname "heartless drama queen". The guy that calls out teammates and says he has always played for sub par teams. The guy that quits on teams and thinks "me" first. The guy that was eventually IOS'ed by his own teammates and coaches. You guys make great cases for other players but no one came in with the expectations that Tracy did and provided more drama than anything else. Pippen is up there. Eddie Griffin is up there. Glen Rice is up there. Sampson, No he did play great while he was healthy. Disappointing, yes but not by his own doing. Stevie, time was cut short by JVG. Played his heart out and gave everything he could. Barkley, played well but father time knocked on his door. There are others but expectation wise and production, I have to say it goes to "Mr. It's On Me".
I don't understand how people think it didn't work. We beat the defending champion Lakers. That's the same team that dominated with 80s with the best PG of all time, Magic Johnson. Does anyone here remotely think that any of the Tmac/Yao teams stood a chance against that Lakers team? Could Tmac guard Worthy? Would they have just put Michael Cooper on Tmac? What does Yao do against the Sky hook?
There's no question that it worked. The more they played together, the better they clicked. Sure, Dream had a lot to learn, but he was incredibly good right off the bat. Sampson already played at a high level, but was inconsistent, and had to adjust to playing a new position. With possibly (before Lucas was tossed) the deepest team in Rockets history (I think it was, anyway), they peaked during the playoffs. With Lucas, I think they win the finals, and that Celtics team was one of the best in NBA history. Even without him, with an oft-injured journeyman at the point and Reid playing incredibly well at the position (who would have thunk it??), they crushed the Lakers. That's always been my favorite team, excepting the two championship teams.
Zan Tabak. V- Span. That Gay british dude that was seen in a rockets uni. but was cut. Amichi?? Tracy Murray Tyron Lue Pete Chilcut
jordan's so overrated he's a great player but not the greatest of all time he never made his teammates better, in fact, he was a bad teammate
Jordan was the best ever. He sure made Pippen better. He made Paxson better. He made Scott Williams better. He made Horace Grant better. He made Bill Cartwright better as an old man. One year Jordan averaged 32 points 8 rebs. 8 asst. while leading the NBA in steals and averaging a block a game from the guard position.
I would have given anything at the time to see the story play out. Instead I felt like we missed the best part. I don't doubt that.
I would say McGrady if it weren't for the fact that he's actually better in the playoffs than in the regular season during his career. I find it hard to pin all the playoff crud on him when he takes an all-star regular season, gets better in the first round, and his team loses.
I base it on money for value, Max shouldn't be on this list... Scottie Pippen Brent Price Matt Maloney Kelvin Cato Charles Barkley (Fat out of shape and no hops for $9 or $12 mln) Stromile Swift (so horrible we got rid of him twice) Novak... horrible 1 game winner Steve Harris... (We left 3 allstars on the board) Eddie Griffin (I don't like bashing the deceased, but... 3 picks for 1 including RJ) Buck Johnson
One guy makes an extreme comment about Pippen and then you go to the other end of the spectrum and make an extreme comment about Jordan. You can't be serious when you say Jordan never made his teammates better.
I don't think T-mac and Yao were disappointments - the results were. Their play has been great and in line with expectations. I list Sampson because he was suppose to be Yao before there was a Yao. Sampson was good in the beginning, but he fizzled quickly after year 3.
he did not make them better they did all the dirty work for jordan, especially grant and rodmen jordan averaging 32 points and 8 assists because he has the ball 99% of the time lebron can duplicate that easy iverson averaged 33 points and 8 assists a couple of years ago great individual talent, yes clutch performer, definitely making his teammates better, no
