There are plenty of basketball players who have been hindered by their lack of physical ability. But just as frequently you come across players with amazing physical ability, but are held back by some of their "mental limitations". Below is a list of the players that first came to mind when I got the idea for this thread. Which of these guys do you think would benefit most from a brain transplant? Is there anybody else you could think of? Stephon Marbury - Steph actually knows the game of basketball, but he just doesn't seem to understand that he needs to allow his teammates to create for themselves on occaision. Steve Francis - The most physically gifted PG in the league, in my opinion. But he just hasn't been able to take his game to the next level. Jamal Crawford - I used to be really, really high on this guy. But it just seems like he doesn't "get it". Kwame Brown - He was the #1 pick for a reason: Michael Jordan is an idiot when it comes to evaluating basketball talent. That said, Kwame has loads of physical ability (Garnett-esque, even), but apparently he just has a lot of trouble understanding the game. Ron Artest - Artest is actually a pretty smart player, and a master of defensive angles and fundamentals. But as we've seen many times over, he just can't control his temper.
Are welimiting this to basketball smarts only? Cause if it isn't you would have to include players like: Kemp: An extremely gifted athlete who let it all go Baker: No need to explain this J-Will: If only he didn't get on that motrocycle..... If it was limited to basketball smarts on the court: Well, I actually can't think of anyone else that you haven't mentioned (mind you I get to see about 2 minutes of NBA basketball a year, so I have nothing to really go on). Ron Artest has to be the guy in most dire need of a brain transplant though. He has unbelievable skills and can read plays incredibly well, but as mentioned has somewhat of a temper problem. Rasheed Wallace could have been put in this category a few years ago, but since being traded to Detroit, he got that brain transplant he so badly needed.
His decision making is being blown out of proportion. Does he have the tendency to ballhog? Yes. But does he neglect his teammates? Hell no. There's only so much you can do with the quality of teammates he has in NY. Put him on a team that needs him to distribute and not score much, then we'll see.
The guy has been on 4 teams already, and each team was in the "get rid of him" mode each time. Didn't he have Garnett in Minnesota? Just another talented player that doesn't know how to win, he's kinda like Francis.
What was the Suns' record last year before they traded him to New York? This year, Steve Nash comes along, and they win 60+. Did Q. Richardson really make that big a difference?
This is somewhat my point when arguing the Nash shouldn't win MVP. Are the Suns significantly better? Yes. But they had Stephon Marbury playing for them last year, which meant they had to suck. The guy does little to improve teammates or teams. Nash is good, but he is no league-leading 4 times WC player of the week (cough, cough...T-Mac!).
In Marburys defense, the Suns were 8-10 last year, then Amare got hurt. They were 4-12 when Amare was out, bringing their record to 12-22, and Marbury was traded. I'm not saying Marbury is a great player, but he had the Suns a game within .500 with a 2nd year Amare healthy. His decision making isn't great, but hes shooting 46% from the field this season, dishing 8+ assists a game, and has a 2.8/1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
I am sorry, but his team sucks dunkey balls. If people are burying Kobe for this, why should Marbury be spared?
But it's not as though he's above asking to be traded when he doesn't think that he's getting enough of the spotlight. My main problem with him is that I don't think that he tries hard enough to win or make his teammates better. I think he's obsessed with his stats, and perhaps the NBA's biggest ballhog since Oscar Robertson.
