The most disappointing superstar in the past decade

As much as I'd like to say Tmac, i'm going with Yao. Guy went down three times when you really thought we had something special: In '06, he was never more dominant for a stretch. Look up the game logs, he was just unstoppable that season but we lost him for like 30 games. Then we lost him after game 12 of the 22 streak in '08 and after game 1 of that semi-final series against the future champs in '09. I had season tickets in 08 and 09 so I remember the heart break well.

I respect Yao because of his commitment to his country but it ultimately prevented a great NBA career.

 

I'd add Grant Hill to that list.

He and Tracy in Orlando would have been an absolutely devastating duo, had he been able to stay on his feet.

 

Jeremy Lin because he hasn't won 10 rings.

 

TMac was a huge disappointment for sure because of all these guys he had the best potential but at least people still consider that fact. They acknowledge that he COULD'VE been one of the greatest of all time.

That said, I actually voted for Arenas. The years he was good, he was goooood. I believe he was close top top 5 in the league in his short prime. The sad part is, he dropped off the map so suddenly and his prime was so short that people actually forget how good he was. Somebody here was saying that it's debatable if he was even a superstar at all in his prime, and really, if we were back in those days seeing him ball like he did, it would be no question that he is.

 

Iverson and TMac to a greater degree.

TMac shoulda been Lebron before Lebron.

 

Some of those names on the poll were never superstars to begin with.

 

Tmac. He was the most skilled of the bunch and had all the tools. Most disappointing.

 

Grant Hill. He was Lebron before Lebron

 

Don't think it's fair for those of you saying Yao. Yao performed every time he got on the court and gave it his all. Injuries should not mean disappointing, just unfortunate. Definitely voted for Tmac.

 

This. Arenas could hit a 3 literally from the parking lot and nobody thought it was luck.

 

This. Dude knew how to put the ball in the basket pretty well. I remember watching him and LeBron go at it that one serious. He had literally no conscious.

 

Gilbert was a half-time show's worst nightmare. He could probably go around 25% on half court shots if he tried. He was one of the best scorers in the 2000s. He averaged 29 points with 2 other allstars on his team. Straight Baller yo.

 

I voted T-Mac. For a brief period, he was considered one of the best guards in the league.

I'm tempted to put Melo & D-Will on the list too, but we'll see how their career ends. Melo's even more one-dimensional than McGrady, and has about equal success.

Williams seems to get worse and worse every year, and he was once considered the 2nd best point guard in the league.

Would anyone else consider Grant Hill?

 

tmac had the skill, talent, and athleticism to be the best player of the past decade.

 

Grant Hill

 

Has to be TMAC hands down. He is the only one on that list with KOBE level talent.

 

I agree. Making a conscious decision to not get better or reach your potential should really be the only criteria on this. I believe I'm in the majority in voting Tmac. I honestly didn't consistently watch the Rockets until he came here. When you consider a player better than Kobe there's definitely merit in his skill set. I will never forget when he beat the Spurs when we thought it was one and done that night. My dad turned the TV off downstairs but I wanted to finish the game. All of a sudden he hears me going crazy upstairs...sigh.

I still have the newspaper article because that is one of the most vivid memories of the Rockets.

 

As for the future, I believe Melo will be my vote. He is one of the most offensively skilled players I've seen as far as speed and strength. He contributed a lot to the USA team but never had that killer instinct. I remember thinking he was finally going to get over the hump back in 2009...but I think it was downhill from there.

 

Yeah, Vince Carter too.

heypartner, Francis is on the list not just because he's a Rocket. He was perceived to be one of the best. The trade to get him to Houston was one of the biggest trades in league history. And he was continued to be hyped for his so-called 20-6-6 stat line since his rookie year.