Who is the most disappointing NBA player in history?

[CelticHooligan3]

Marv Albert hands down...

[Who]

Michael Beasley has been very disappointing.

He was incredible in college. 26.2ppg + 12.4rpg + 61.8% TS%.

[Snakehead]

I guess I'm surprised with some names, like Webber and Iverson.  Maybe we all have different definitions of the "disappointment."  So I looked it up on dictionary.com.  Disappointment really just led me to disappointing, which was defined as "failing to fulfill one's hopes or expectations."  So what did you guys really expect from Iverson?  NBA MVP, 11x All-Star, , 2x All-Star MVP, 7x All-NBA, Top 5 in scoring 8x's (leading the league 4x's), Top 5 in steals 7x's (leading the league 3x's).  Finals Appearance.  All over a 14 year career.  And you guys are disappointed with this body of work?  Maybe a first ballot HOFer? (probably some debate on this, actually it would be interesting to see a poll).  I really think Iverson overachieved, the exact opposite of a disappointment.  I remember how many arguments there were that Iverson shouldn't even be selected #1, no 6' player has ever been drafted that high, he was too small, too out of control, etc.  I doubt even Iverson's strongest supporters would have predicted the resume he ended up with.  Are you guys really calling him a disappointment?

And same thing with Webber. 5x All-Star, 5x All-NBA, 20.1ppg, 9.5rpg, 4.1apg, 1.4spg, 1.4bpg over a 15 year career, and the centerpiece of one of the best teams in the NBA for a 4-5 year span (who conspiracy theorists believe should have had at least one NBA title).  Maybe expectations were a little higher with Webber, most probably thought he'd be a 10x All-Star, MVP, etc, but he did have a run as one of the best players in the NBA.  So he didn't end up as one of the best PF's ever, there can only be so many of those.  Maybe the title is thrown around a little too easily causing some disappointment when a player doesn't live up to those lofty expectations, but come on now.  McHale was supposed to be the best PF ever, then Barkley and Malone, then Derrick Coleman (who I agree is a legitimate disappointment), then Webber/Sheed, then Duncan/Garnett, etc.  It's like some people throw out "next best (fill in position here) ever" like movies get reviewed with "best movie of the year."  (When you have 20 "best movies of the year" it kind of loses it's credibility).

All in all, I would say Iverson overachieved and Webber probably slightly underachieved, but I can't see how either can be considered the biggest disappointment ever.


(and when I say All NBA I include 1st, 2nd, and 3rd team).

If the title or point of the thread was biggest flops, I think that'd be right on.  But dissapointment is another thing.  For me personally, some of the most dissapointing players are ones that were still great but could of been better still.

Iverson for myself was a personal one.  He overachieved based on what was expected of him coming into the league, yes, but once you saw the talent it was dissapointing that he never had a better attitude and team desire for the game.  He was selfish, and that partially can make players great, especially scorers like himself and Jordan, but he could have had a better attitude and became a better player.  That being said, it's not like he didn't achieve most of his potential. He is one of the better players in NBA history, but could have been more.  He is not a flop like say Kwame, but personally I thought he could of been more.

I personally do not find Webber a dissapointment at all.  He played on very good Kings teams that got robbed by the refs one year when they should of beat LA and otherwise faced very tough Western Conference opposition and yes, an outstanding Lakers team.  Maybe he could of achieved more via championships but individually he did all you could ask and was a good teammate.

[acieEarl]

I'd leave out Iverson and McGrady, because they had some all-star level years. No one expected much from Mcgrady and he was really good with Orlando.

I'd say people like Ron Mercer, Kwame, Darko,D Wagner, D Miles.. Anyone drafted in the top 5 shoulda done something, and when you see several guy drafted after them that are quality players. Anyone drafted after pick 10 you really can't be too disappointed.

I would also leave out injured guys like Dukies, J. Williams, Shawn Livingston, Bobby Hurley. You really don't know how good they could have been.

[bdm860]

With the way the NBA is now, I don't necessarily consider draft busts a big disappointment, say a guy like Stromile Swift, a disappointment sure, but not a big disappointment in my book.  Even though he was drafted #2, I don't think he had super high expectations by most people, nobody thought he was a sure thing, it was a big gamble, drafting him was like buying a lottery ticket, maybe this can be a million dollar pay off in 4-5 years, or maybe he'll be a bust, but that's the way the NBA draft is now, a lot more big gambles early in the draft.  It wasn't always like this though, back in the '90's top 5 picks were supposed to be more of a sure thing.  So for big disappointments (although I wouldn't consider any of these the biggest):

Joe Smith.  #1 pick in '95, and pretty much the only award on his resume is All-Rookie team.  Never an All-Star, never finished in the top 10 in any significant category.  Never really established himself as an everyday NBA starter (started about 60% of his NBA games, but if you look at it season by season it's all over the place).  Ended up being a solid NBA player over 15 years, but if that's all it says on my resume after being the #1 pick when 3 of the 4 guys drafted after you played the same position, and all 4 guys drafted after you made All-Star games/All-NBA teams I'm disappointed.

Billy Owens, #3 pick in '91, traded for an already 20ppg scorer in Mitch Richmond.  Of the top 5 picks in '91, Owens is the only one to never make an All-Star game/All-NBA team.  Never even whiffed the top 10 in any significant category.  Again the only award on his resume is All-Rookie team.  Had a solid NBA career over 10 years, but when you break up Run-TMC I expect big things.  Big things which Billy Owens never came close to delivering.

[soap07]

Just as a reminder - draft busts like Telfair don't count. Telfair never really showed why he was so hyped up after he entered the NBA, whereas McGrady has.

Webber, Vince Carter, Marbury, Francis, Glenn Robinson - all great examples.

[the_Bird]

Has anybody mentioned Antoine yet?

Dude could do pretty much anything early in his career.  Great rebounder.  Great touch inside.  One of the best passing big men in the League.  

Could have been a transformative figure, could have been a guy that played the PF position in a way that very, very few have ever played it before.  Inside/out game, collect double-digit rebounds while dishing out at least a half-dozen assists each game.

Instead, he got lazy, got out of shape, stopped working down low, seemed to stop improving his game, and decided that he should just jack up three pointers all game long.  

I'll maintain that Antoine *could* have been one of the all-time greatest Celtics.  

That, to me, is the epitome of a "disappointing" career.

[Who]

Has anybody mentioned Antoine yet?

Dude could do pretty much anything early in his career.  Great rebounder.  Great touch inside.  One of the best passing big men in the League.  

Could have been a transformative figure, could have been a guy that played the PF position in a way that very, very few have ever played it before.  Inside/out game, collect double-digit rebounds while dishing out at least a half-dozen assists each game.

Instead, he got lazy, got out of shape, stopped working down low, seemed to stop improving his game, and decided that he should just jack up three pointers all game long.  

I'll maintain that Antoine *could* have been one of the all-time greatest Celtics.  

That, to me, is the epitome of a "disappointing" career.

Yeah, Antoine was one of the first names that came to my mind too.

A star talent who should have been one of the best players of his generation but failed to put the pieces together.

Baron Davis was mentioned earlier. He was a great selection. Davis should have been the best point guard of his generation. He was phenomenally talented.

Antoine Walker was such an incredible talent. The ball-handling ability, the passing, the shooting. A matchup nightmare at forward. Too big and strong for small forwards and too talented on the perimeter and in transition for power forwards. The post game, the rebounding. Versatile enough to slide into any of the the other three if needed.

[the_Bird]

+1 to Baron, too.  Another guy who just absolutely fell in love with the 3-pointer, despite his mediocre shooting percentage.  In New Orleans, he was putting up almost nine (NINE!) a game despite shooting 32%. 

[moiso]

Yeah, Baron Davis is a joke.  The guy could have been one of the greats.  Plus he takes a month off for a hangnail.  And it seems like he's in shape every other year.

[bdm860]

Ready to look at this argument from a whole different angle, Arvydas Sabonis.

Just think what that his NBA career could have been like had he come over in '86 instead of '95, and if he never tore his Achilles' way back in his early 20's.  Sabonis didn't start his NBA career till he was 31, and he ended up putting up 23.6/10.2 in the playoffs his rookie year.  What a tease. 

Portland lost in the Finals in both '90 and '92 with Kevin Duckworth as their starting Center averaging less than 6rpg.  Just think if they had Sabonis.  2 rings (and one less for Isaih and Jordan) is definitely a possibility.

Just think of what could have been with Sabonis's NBA career had he started in 1986, and thinking about that I don't think I could be more disappointed

[fanofgreen]

Rasheed Wallace - "should of had the title of 'Greatest Power Forward Ever' had he played up to his talent level". Only McHale had more/better post moves.

and


Lamar Odom - we should be comparing LeBron to Lamar Odom, instead of Kobe or Jordan. Had Lamar lived up to his talent/potential, coming in everyone would have been annointing LeBron back in 03' as a rookie, the next Lamar Odom!



Two guys who should of been Top 50 of all-time guys.

Aslo Baron Davis, but he's been covered I see already.

[guava_wrench]

Rasheed Wallace - "should of had the title of 'Greatest Power Forward Ever' had he played up to his talent level". Only McHale had more/better post moves.

and


Lamar Odom - we should be comparing LeBron to Lamar Odom, instead of Kobe or Jordan. Had Lamar lived up to his talent/potential, coming in everyone would have been annointing LeBron back in 03' as a rookie, the next Lamar Odom!



Two guys who should of been Top 50 of all-time guys.

Aslo Baron Davis, but he's been covered I see already.

There are so many players that became all star level players like this yet who didn't have the mental makeup to become all stars that I can't consider them for a category like this. So much imagination is needed for that. We might not be giving enough credit to the greats when we put such expectations on not-so-greats.

[Weird Facts]

Steve Francis
- guy went from franchise to no where to be found in about a week

[guava_wrench]

I think some people get caught up in overly optimistic forecasts. I mean, Jermaine O'Neal? Why would anyone expect him to be any more than he was?

AI may be the most bizarre suggestion to a list like this. AI would have been a far lesser player if he wasn't so headstrong. Even more significantly, he obviously would be considered a far lesser player than he is currently considered if he allowed himself to be a complimentary player. This kind of analysis puts players in no win situations.

Considering how many players never really contributed anything in the NBA despite ridiculous amounts of talent an physical tools, AI doesn't compare and belongs no where near a list like this. There isn't even much room for him to improve upon himself since he is already a HOF caliber player.