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Most Unfortunate NBA Careers

Discussion in 'NBA Dish' started by Rox225, Jun 3, 2004.

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  1. Rashmon

    Rashmon Contributing Member

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    Sam Bowie should be in the tragedy section.

    He broke his leg. Twice. He was never the same and it ruined his career.

    Ralph was not a bust. Look at his numbers prior to blowing out his knee.

    I would add John Lucas to the tragedy.
     
    #21 Rashmon, Jun 4, 2004
  2. tierre_brown

    tierre_brown Contributing Member

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    DerMarr Johnson?
     
    #22 tierre_brown, Jun 4, 2004
  3. jo mama

    jo mama Contributing Member

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    karl malone...

    his career has been very unfortuante for countless noses, teeth and scrodums.
     
    #23 jo mama, Jun 4, 2004
  4. Rox225

    Rox225 Contributing Member

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    I would consider Jerry Stack a decent size bust. Once again he fell victim to the North Carolina Syndrome of being compared to MJ23, which only sets you up for failure. He has had a decent career, but decent doesn't cut it when you have that much expectation.

    Additions to the list would be:
    1: Bryant Reeves (Busted a backboard and then just busted)
    2: Tom Gugliotta (Gugs never recovered from injuries)
    3: Christian Laettnar (Another Duke bust)
    4: Derrick Coleman? (Drafted #1 out of the my school the 'Cuse)
    5: Antonio McDyess (Still not half of what he use to be)


    A Controversial one: Magic Johnson (HIV Infection)- Yes Magic was past his prime, but he still had plenty of years left in him. This of course was self imposed because of his lifestyle, but would you consider this a tragedy?
     
    #24 Rox225, Jun 4, 2004
  5. JPM0016

    JPM0016 Contributing Member

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    i guess it was 3/4 years ago after he had gotten outta rehab i saw him playing pickup games at my highschool. It was sad watching Moses Malone outplay him.

    Lottery Busts - Michael Olowokandi comes to mind. A 7 foot center drafted #1 who has amounted to nothing.
     
    #25 JPM0016, Jun 4, 2004
  6. Bogey

    Bogey Contributing Member

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    I didn't even think about Reggie. If the Goat had stayed clean, I think everyone would have been calling Jordan and all the others, the next Goat.

    Wasn't Pistol Pete's career a lot shorter than it should have been. From the talent he had in college, he should have had a better pro career. Ditto for Chris Jackson (aka Mahmoud A'bdul Raouf, I'll be suprised if I came anywhere close to spelling that right).
     
    #26 Bogey, Jun 4, 2004
  7. Easy

    Easy Boban Only Fan
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    My top choices:

    Tragedies unrelated to basketball: Petrovic, Hurley, and Jay Williams.

    Basketball related injuries: Ralph Sampson and Grant Hill.

    Self-inflicted tragedies: Lucas, Tarpley, Kemp, Mad Max, Eddie Griffin.

    You can see I'm Rockets biased. :)
     
    #27 Easy, Jun 4, 2004
  8. Agent94

    Agent94 Member

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    #28 Agent94, Jun 4, 2004
  9. steddinotayto

    steddinotayto Contributing Member

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    Man...did we all forget about Bernard King? If he never went through so many injuries in his career, he certainly would have been one of the greatest. His 2 or so seasons of great basketball was something.
     
    #29 steddinotayto, Jun 4, 2004
  10. Rocket River

    Rocket River Member

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    What about Livingston . . . .. I want to say out of LSU
    he was with the Rockets for a while

    USe to be lightening quick but after busting up his knee
    a few times. . he was basically done

    Rocket River
     
    #30 Rocket River, Jun 4, 2004
  11. MacBeth

    MacBeth Member

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    Maybe Never Nervous should be renamed Never Mentioned. Talk about your lottery busts.


    Greatest career cut short to injury ( non-fatal): Danny Manning. Seriously, could have been one of the best all around players. Ever.

    Others: Hill, Hardaway, Bowie, Ron Harper, Ralph Sampson ( had sort of leveled off, but still coulda/shoulda been better), etc.

    All the tragedies have been mentioned. Too many lottery busts/self-infilcted to talk about, but Derrick Coleman and Roy Tarpley deserve mentioning again. COleman, like Manning, could have been among the best ever, and unlike Manning, got in his own way. Tarpley was a monster; for those who never saw him, he was a legit 7 footer, with an inside mentality and exceptional all around athleticism.
     
    #31 MacBeth, Jun 4, 2004
  12. pgabriel

    pgabriel Educated Negro

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    Roy Tarpley used to give Olajuwon fits. Probably the best opponent on a consistent basis Hakeem ever faced.


    Plus, that Dallas team was a damn fine team with Tarpley, Harper, Blackmon, and Aguire. I still remember the game in the playoffs when Olajuwon and Sleepy both scored forty and they still lost to the Mavs.
     
    #32 pgabriel, Jun 4, 2004
  13. Rox225

    Rox225 Contributing Member

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    You mean Randy Livingston? I remember there were a lot of people talking about his potential, but he never recovered from those injuries.
     
    #33 Rox225, Jun 4, 2004
  14. SamFisher

    SamFisher Contributing Member

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    Connie Hawkins

    He still made the NBA and eventually the HOF, but if not for the scandals that kept him out of the league for so long, who knows how great he could have been. People who saw him play put him up there with Dr. J, Jordan, etc.

    http://www.nba.com/history/players/hawkins_bio.html
     
    #34 SamFisher, Jun 4, 2004
  15. MAMI33

    MAMI33 Member

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    I see a couple of people saying Eddie Griffin but I noticed nobody put Kwame Brown. He was a REAL bust!
     
    #35 MAMI33, Jun 4, 2004
  16. Rox225

    Rox225 Contributing Member

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    What about Walt Williams and even Jimmy Jackson? These guys coming out of college were supposed to be crazy talents. They have both had decent careers but more or less have fallen in obscurity.

    Lets not forget Joe Smith!
     
    #36 Rox225, Jun 4, 2004
  17. Stack24

    Stack24 Contributing Member

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    Bobby Phills Death

    I know he didn't become great but was a bad ass at LSU and made shaq look second best at the time. Stanley Roberts drug problems.
     
    #37 Stack24, Jun 4, 2004
  18. alexdapooh

    alexdapooh Contributing Member

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    Yinka Dare also passed away not too long ago.
     
    #38 alexdapooh, Jun 4, 2004
  19. pacertom

    pacertom Member

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    need to mention David Thompson.

    He was a 6'4" Jordan before there was a Jordan, and he is a Hall-of-Famer, but drugs cut his career drastically.
     
    #39 pacertom, Jun 4, 2004
  20. thomp1141

    thomp1141 Member

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    My short list of tragities:

    1. Reggie Lewis
    2. Petro
    3. Maurice Stokes
    4. Bobby P.
    5. Malik S.

    I would include Bias, but he never did play, so I'm leaving him off.
     
    #40 thomp1141, Jun 4, 2004
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