Knicks · Who is the one NBA player that you think wasted their career. (page 3)

How could I forget Lenny Cooke! Darius Miles also comes to mind.

Chris Washburn, NC State.
Have to put Antoine Carr up there. He could play but he got fat and it was about the money.

In many cases its not that it was just a waste of a player. Not everyone is wired for the demands of the job. We don’t publicly lambast other professionals for not having “passion” like we do athletes. Its a job. Its about having a life and obsessing over their bodies, conditioning, injury maintenance and hours and hours of practice. Tennis pro’s hit balls for hours on end.
Pro sports holds about the top 1% world wide in that sport. A guy makes it to the NBA and we then measure them as “lazy” if they don’t have the passion to make it to the top 100.

Anthony Randolph. Werent many players when Randolph entered the league who had his combination of length and athleticism. Some players keep finding new ways to get better. AR wasnt one of them. Always looked like he was about to burst into tears, when he sat on the bench.

GustavBahler wrote:Anthony Randolph. Werent many players when Randolph entered the league who had his combination of length and athleticism. Some players keep finding new ways to get better. AR wasnt one of them. Always looked like he was about to burst into tears, when he sat on the bench.

Good call. Honestly he wasn't that much different than Giannis from a physical standpoint early in their careers. I remember the comparisons to KG. When we had him i was hoping Dantoni could tap into his potential as a frontcourt of Randolph, Stoudemire, and Gallinari could have been scary.

Knixkik wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:Anthony Randolph. Werent many players when Randolph entered the league who had his combination of length and athleticism. Some players keep finding new ways to get better. AR wasnt one of them. Always looked like he was about to burst into tears, when he sat on the bench.

Good call. Honestly he wasn't that much different than Giannis from a physical standpoint early in their careers. I remember the comparisons to KG. When we had him i was hoping Dantoni could tap into his potential as a frontcourt of Randolph, Stoudemire, and Gallinari could have been scary.

Like the early Giannis comparison. Randolph didnt have the motor that Giannis has.

Anthony Randolph never accomplished in the NBA. Lots of players out of college drafted high but did not pan out. Not a waste, just misjudged potential.
To me a guy that earns a big after rookie contract then falls out do to non injury issue is a waste of talent.
Joakim Noah, had it, then partied it away. Waste.
Marvin Barnes. Was incredible in the ABA, was second over all NBA pick after Bill Walton.

Before he left his job as New Jersey Nets president and general manager, Rod Thorn joked about his very short head coaching days with the Spirits and his relationship with Mr. Barnes.
Mr. Barnes had his own set of rules, and Thorn frequently fined him, saying the figure reached about $30,000.
In an effort to change their relationship, Thorn waited for Mr. Barnes to have a good game, and the two spoke for nearly two hours about the need for Mr. Barnes to be a leader on the team.
The next morning, Mr. Barnes missed the team plane.
“I have never seen a player lose so much talent so fast,” Thorn once said.

Barnes died in 2014. History of Drug abuse and had been arrested. He was an incredible player!!

Often the colorful personality, Barnes once refused to board a plane from Louisville to St. Louis. Because the flight was scheduled to arrive (Central Time) before its departure time (Eastern Time), Barnes famously said, "I ain't getting in no damn time machine." He rented a car instead.

smackeddog wrote:He wasn't a disaster but I would have liked to see what an in shape, good attitude Derrick Coleman could have achieved.

DC had that heart problem.... he managed to have a decent career after that though. He just couldn't workout as hard as everyone after his diagnosis

GustavBahler wrote:

Knixkik wrote:

GustavBahler wrote:Anthony Randolph. Werent many players when Randolph entered the league who had his combination of length and athleticism. Some players keep finding new ways to get better. AR wasnt one of them. Always looked like he was about to burst into tears, when he sat on the bench.

Good call. Honestly he wasn't that much different than Giannis from a physical standpoint early in their careers. I remember the comparisons to KG. When we had him i was hoping Dantoni could tap into his potential as a frontcourt of Randolph, Stoudemire, and Gallinari could have been scary.

Like the early Giannis comparison. Randolph didnt have the motor that Giannis has.

He was inside his own head. He actually had a nice career in Europe and China

Coming out of the 'Cuse, I thought Billy Owens was going to be a less athletic version of Grant Hill. Turns out, Owens was a jack of all trades, master of none type player. Not sure what his work ethic was like but didn't expect him to flame out like he did.

If not for injury, Penny Hardaway was on his way to being the next Magic...He was going to be an all time great...When the Magic beat the Bulls in 95, there were moments when Penny was the best player on the floor

Mahmoud Abdul Rauf had the prime years of his career taken away....

Uptown wrote:If not for injury, Penny Hardaway was on his way to begin the next Magic...He was going to be an all time great...He the Magic beat the Bulls in 95, there were moments when Pennyw as the best player on the floor

I recall very vividly when Penny was in college and being in wonder at what he was doing on the court and just waiting for him to get to NBA

martin wrote:

Uptown wrote:If not for injury, Penny Hardaway was on his way to begin the next Magic...He was going to be an all time great...When the Magic beat the Bulls in 95, there were moments when Penny was the best player on the floor

I recall very vividly when Penny was in college and being in wonder at what he was doing on the court and just waiting for him to get to NBA

Penny was amazing...pre-injury, he was one of the best players I had even seen. He was the new-era Magic. I had been reading about him when he was in college. I used to get Street & Smith college basketball magazines and they would dedicate a section to the top 50 high school players in the country. As a junior in HS, he was the best player in the country according to multiple scouts.

Remember, he was voted to the all top 50 team based on projections...Then he got hurt .

whatever happened to Pearl Washington and Jonny Flynn? Those were two PGs highly touted, and then zippo when they got into the league.

franco12 wrote:whatever happened to Pearl Washington and Jonny Flynn? Those were two PGs highly touted, and then zippo when they got into the league.

Pearl had health issues and Flynn was drafted by the Kahn managed Timberwolves...Rubio's career was almost sucked up in that blackhole.

franco12 wrote:whatever happened to Pearl Washington and Jonny Flynn? Those were two PGs highly touted, and then zippo when they got into the league.

Flynn had hip problem and I think maybe went to Europe for year or 2 and that's it

Uptown wrote:Coming out of the 'Cuse, I thought Billy Owens was going to be a less athletic version of Grant Hill. Turns out, Owens was a jack of all trades, master of none type player. Not sure what his work ethic was like but didn't expect him to flame out like he did.

Don't consider Billy a waste. He was put in a position at Syracuse that probably made him look more dominant than he really was. Grant Hill's career was shaved of several prime years due to the ankle. I know the injury wasn't his fault. But his decision to play through it cost him for the rest of his career. Cautionary tale for players.

franco12 wrote:whatever happened to Pearl Washington and Jonny Flynn? Those were two PGs highly touted, and then zippo when they got into the league.

The Pearl was must see tv and the 'Cuse!!! Good call on him. NY playground legend and one of the the best Big East players ever. He was better than Mark Jackson and Kenny Smith entering college, yet both had much better NBA career's than he did. Big Daddy pointed out some health issues plus he never developed his jumper....

I never thought Johnny Flynn was a good NBA prospect.

Uptown wrote:Mahmoud Abdul Rauf had the prime years of his career taken away....

This guy was my favorite and agree he was just figuring things out basketball-wise when the flag controversy hit... he still lights it up in Cube's Big 3 League. He was ahead of his time!

How about a player who "wasted his career" a bit differently. Was still a legend, an incredibly accomplished player( just not in the NBA) perhaps the best passing center of all time. Played professionally for 14 years before coming to NBA with all sorts of miles and chronic injuries. I give you the great Arvydas Sabonis.

ramtour420 wrote:How about a player who "wasted his career" a bit differently. Was still a legend, an incredibly accomplished player( just not in the NBA) perhaps the best passing center of all time. Played professionally for 14 years before coming to NBA with all sorts of miles and chronic injuries. I give you the great Arvydas Sabonis.

Those soviet era plyaers played for the red army team "In europe". He could not come over for a while.
Injury not a waste. Why are we doing this?
Even Drug Use can be seen as "disease" and we can have some empathy.
Abul Rauf was not a waste, true it was taken away from him. Dude had turettes and had a strong belief. Vilified for seen as being disresepctful during national anthem.
Lamar Odom fell to drug use. Is that a waste?
Michael Sweetney, his biology and depression issue was not condusive to an NBA career. That he had NBA talent from hard work, is that a waste?
When did Marbury cross the line? Did he decline due to lack of hard work? Age slow him? Allan Iverson similar. Great players who declined prematurely. A waste at a higher level?
But Jonny flynn? No, he might have been a dissapointment but thats not the same as "waste". As mentioned, he had bad hip problems.
AR had a nice career overseas, that not the same as being a waste. He never had it here. Immature? Undeveloped physically? Perhaps, but lots of players make a transition to NBA as a one and done and needed more time.
Bernard king had legal issues early which to me was "waste", then he got it together wonderfully! He was fortunate to get a second chance. Not all players get one.