Announcing The Unrealized Potential All Stars!

You can check the NCAA Basketball Odds and compare them to the John Hollinger Draft Projections all you want; predicting a career is nearly impossible. For the same reasons, slamming a career that didn't work out as planned is not fair. We have just heard so much talk about the present all stars, but what about the players who should have been all stars, but never fully cashed in on their potential?

They are the butts of jokes, get bad press or get no press at all. But is it all their fauls? FCP presents a loose list of the Unrealized Potential All Stars. Is someone missing? Feel free to comment below.

Starters:

Point Guard: Steve Francis

He had so much potential he was nick named 'Stevie Franchise' before he had actually proven himself. He peaked in his 3'rd year with a 21/7/6 season using his incredible athletic ability to get to the rim to dominate the entire league from the point. Unfortunately his durability was an issue and his stats would gradually decline and as pointed out in this space before, he lacked the pure skills to overcome it. Instead of carrying teams to the playoffs and the HOF, Steve became one of the worst contracts in league history. He was paid 17 million a year to play for dreadful Orlando teams and then sank the second franchise of his career (the first being the Grizzlies when he refused to play there) when he became the proverbial nail in the coffin of the Isiah Thomas era Knicks.

Shooting Guard: Drazen Petrovic

If you haven't watched the 30 For 30 documentary by Vlade Divac about his relationship with Petrovic, Once Brothers, I highly recommend it. You'll get to see more of Petrovic's incredible game that we only truly saw for two seasons with the Nets establishing himself as one of the best guards in the NBA. The following summer Petrovic was killed instantly in a car crash with his girlfriend as he was sleeping and didn't buckle his seat belt ending his life and NBA career. So hey kids, buckle up! The point is, not many basketball players are good enough to have a statue in their image made of them and Petrovic was.

Small Forward: Grant Hill

Unrealized All Star MVP

In 1995 GQ ran a special issue called "The Future Of Sports." On the cover they asked "Can Grant Hill save sports?" They counted off the 50 most important people in sports and Hill was #1. When I saw this issue on news stands did I laugh? No, it made sense. Grant Hill was bigger then basketball, he was a mega-star in the making who transcended all pro sports. And he was only a rookie. I'm not sure anyone has had more potential then Hill and he looked poised to reach it putting up triple doubles like he was ordering them in a coffee shop.

Then the injuries started. And Hill started trying to play through him to prove his toughness to Detroit's fans. Then Hill didn't play another injury free legitimate season till he was 35 years old in Phoenix. And just like that, the man who was the Future Of Sports had an insignificant career.

Power Forward: Len Bias

Len Bias never played in the NBA, but he for sure made it. That's because the night after he was selected by the Boston Celtics in the draft he overdosed on cocaine and never got to step on a court. Highlights, games, player/coach/scout testimonials all point to Len Bias being a bona fide superstar. He was going to a team with enormous talent that was ageing and would be a perfect fit to slowly take over a la Tim Duncan. It's hard to know how good he would have been, but it's easy to tell he fulfilled less potential then nearly any player in history.

Center: Greg Oden

Snap A Pic!

Oden was a monster in college. Perhaps never better exemplified then his NCAA Final game when his control of the paint kept his Ohio Buckeyes in a game they had no business in. Oden blocked or altered nearly every single shot within 10 feet. With his dominant hand broken. And in the NBA? Oden made more news when his gargantuan penis was leaked online then with his play. Injuries have kept him down and prevented him from playing anything more then bench minutes. Tragic for the man who was drafted before Kevin Durant.

Bench

Point Guard: Jay Williams

Again Kids, Safety First!

I first read about Jay Williams in an issue of Slam magazine when he was a child of 13 or 14 years old. They said watch out for this kid, so I did. And they were right. ACC Rookie Of The Year. National Freshmen Of The Year. He won the Naismith and Wooden awards as the NCAA player of the year after leading Duke to the championship game and scoring over 25 PPG. He was selected 2'nd overall after only Yao Ming.

After his rookie season Williams crashed his motorcycle into a street light and nearly lost his life. He was not wearing a helmet, or to drive a motorcycle in the state and was violating his contract by riding one. The Bulls played nice and bought him out for 3 million (when they could have given nothing, per a voided contract). Williams signed years later with the Nets, but wasa waived. Then signed with a d-league team, and again was waived.


Shooting Guard: Adam Morrison

FCP Has A Soft Spot
For Facial Hair

Like the real all star team, we are playing with positions to fit Chris Webber on. :) And Morrison could play the 2.

"The Stache" built up his potential in college where he starred at Gonzaga where he averaged 28 PPG on 50% shooting and 42% from the arc. If history is kind it will view his famous crying after his team was beaten out of the NCAA bracket as 'passionate' instead of weak and remember how he was one of the best scorers in college history. If history is kind, it also won't bring up his NBA career since it's invariably going to be misjudged. Perhaps the Larry Bird comparisons were exaggerated, but you don't get that kind of hype without having some serious game.

Morrison did not have a spectacular rookie season averaging 12 PPG, shooting under 40%. To be fair though, when he did start the majority of his games he scored over 15 PPG. What's unfair to Morrison is that while most rookies have a few years to get used to elite level basketball, Morrison blew out his knee after a merely average rookie campaign to become a severe liability. His career ended with his rookie contract. Had he not hurt his knee Morrison could have in the very least been a solid shooting role player, or, had a multiple all star ceiling.

Small Forward: Chris Webber

My Favouritism Chris Webber,
Was This Chris Webber

When I read writers slam Chris Webber's career, they bring up things like inability to take big shots. I've never understood. Chris Webber had more then just taking big shots. 'Big Shots' are a simple method writers use to spin engaging stories and compare everyone to Michael Jordan. Webber had serious game and it was more then just taking shots. How many countless games were won on Big Passes? Lots. But that's still not the issue with Webber's career.

Webber, in my mind, won one championship. I will never give credit to the Lakers for their 2003 ring because winning from cheating is not winning but stealing. Just like in court, whether you steal someone's property or are in possession of it, you're still guilty of a crime. That's still not the issue.

Webber came into the NBA by storm. He was a threat to be a top 10 player of all time. People often forget, but injuries hampered him from his second year in the league. His athleticism never fully returned or was capitalized on from his rookie days on the Warriors. He missed nearly half his second season and nearly his entire third season in the NBA due to a serious knee injury. He missed more time in 2002 due to his knee. Every time Webber lost a little of what he had. But in 2002 the camel's back finally broke and Webber lost any semblance of his promising athletic ability.

He still managed a few productive seasons on skill/talent alone after this, but eventually his career ended with an embarrassing stint playing 14 MPG where it all started on the Golden State Warriors under his first coach, Don Nelson.

Power Forward: Pervis Ellison

Never Nervous Pervis was drafted first in a 1989 draft featuring Danny Ferry, Sean Elliot, Glen Rice, Nick Anderson, Mookie Blaylock, Tim Hardaway, Dana Barros, Shawn Kemp, BJ Armstrong, Vlade Divac, Sherman Douglas and Clifford Robinson after leading Louisville to a National Championship in his second year.

When he got to the NBA, injuries already started to take their hold on him as he missed the majority of his rookie season leading Danny Ainge to dub him "Out Of Service Pervis." Once healthy and given minutes on the Bullets Ellison put up 20 PPG, 11 RPG, 2.7 BPG and shot 53% from the field to win the league's Most Improved Player award playing at a level merely expected in his rookie season. Unfortunately this was his peak and the knee injuries kept piling up till he finished his career playing 4 MPG on a 44 win Settle Supersonics team


Center: Ralph Sampson

FEAR ME, WHITE BOYS!

Sampson, if anything, was a player with limitless potential. When he and Dream put it all together, they formed a nearly unstoppable offensive and defensive force. Sampson averaged 20 PPG, 10 RPG 2 BPG and a steal over his first three Rockets seasons. When they met the defending champion Lakers in the West finals the Rockets lost the first game, and then destroyed the Lakers in 4 straight games. The series was never really close. They lost the finals in 6 games to the arguable GOAT team Celtics after which their coach, K.C. Jones, called them "The New Monsters On The Block."

The next season, Sampson suffered back and knee injuries that led to him being traded and was never the same. There is also an alleged 'nose injuries' that Sampson and his team-mates suffered. It is rumoured that from time to time, Sampson would trip in his home and mysteriously find his nostrils stuffed full of cocaine.

Utility 1: Orlando Woolridge

Woolridge's Talent Has Fallen
Through The Cracks
of NBA History

How many times have you heard someone make this 'obvious' statement.

Michael Jordan only had crap players around him for the first 7 years. Of course he didn't win with a garbage supporting cast!

I've heard it many times and it may just become the subject of another article. Why it's coming up now though is because it perfectly reflects how under-rated Orlando Woolridge has become. Woolridge never made an all star team but peaked averaging 23 PPG on 55% shooting playing 'with' Michael Jordan. He put up similar numbers the next year when Jordan was injured for most of the entire season and again on the Nets as their best player.

Then Orlando's nostrils, implanted with some kind of cocaine magnets, led to a league suspension 15 games into his next season. Cocaine like many hard drugs is actually quite clean. Within a day or two, all traces of it leaves your system. Therefore, it can only be imagined how often Orlando was likely snorting to get caught by a drug test.

He then played a role on the Lakers winning attempting and filing to win a ring. Then gave it one last shot to become a true star on the Nuggets. He almost did it too scoring 25.5 PPG with 7 RPG under "The System", Paul Westhead's offensive genius run and gun offence. For much of the season Woolridge actually led the league in scoring but it fell apart when he sustained an eye injury and missed almost half the games. He would never play over 30 MPG again and was out of the league 3 years later.

Utility 2: Sam Bowie

Retired == Promise

The historical laughing stock of the NBA draft. He's brought up as many times as the career of Michael Jordan is brought up. People call him the biggest draft mistake in history. I named my fantasy league "Sam Bowie Is The Greatest!" to commemorate the event. But was it fair?

Not really. Sam Bowie had promise. Lots of it. In his second year he averaged 17 PPG, 9 RPG and 3 blocks. A defensive center who's also an efficient scorer == wins in the NBA. Especially 'that' NBA of the 80's. People expected Bowie to partner with Clyde Drexler for one of the  most potent inside outside teams in the NBA. Instead Bowie was never able to take off. He peaked out with a 17 PPG 10 RPG 2 BPG season but spent an entire career re-injuring and rehabbing.

There you have it. The Unrealized Potential All Stars! Additions? Hate? Love? Post it in the comments below.

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Talent = Skill + Ability: The Battle Of The Steves (and Tyreke Evans)

Evans And Francis' Careers Are Mirror Images Thus Far

By: The Pest

Who's more talented... Tyreke Evans or Stephen Curry?

If you go by the evaluation of the NBA in general last year, it's Evans in a landslide which garnered him ROY honors. But is it the case?

It depends on perspective. If you consider 'right now' Evans was able to overwhelm Curry on the basis of his athletic ability, raw stats and highlight plays. If it's career based, and you picture yourself looking back at the year 2010 when they're getting ready for the Hall Of Fame, your perspective changes. Those who ranked on ability are most likely to be laughing at themselves, and those ranking on skill are most likely going to be saying 'told ya so'.

Allow me to demonstrate. The year is 2002, lets look back and compare two points, Steve Francis and Steve Nash.

Francis was electric. He dunked on people's heads. His nickname was "Franchise". He made highlight reels nightly. Nash was probably the 2'nd or 3'rd (and some may say 4th) best player on a pretty good Mavs team that won 57 games. Here are their 02 stats:

Francis: 21.6 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 6.4 APG, 1.2 SPG, 42%, 35% from 3, 77% from the line, 3.9 TO, 3.0 PF

Nash: 17.9 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 7.7 APG, .6 SPG, 48%, 45% from 3, 89% from the line, 2.8 TOs, 2.0 PF

Francis Liked Playing With Yao So Much,
He Decided To End His Career Playing In China
For A Team Called The Ducks

If you were to say that Nash was the better player, was going to have a better career and much more a lock for the HOF, people would have ridiculed you. If you pointed out that Nash had an array of honed skills that were far superior to Francis, that he was more effective while scoring only marginally fewer points and more assists people would say you were just making excuses and that Nash, while good, was just an inferior player, he didn't have the same talent. (It should be noted that Nash's defence was rarely brought up until he was the best player on a truly GOAT level offensive team).

Looking back now though it's difficult to tell what was thicker, the irony or the heads of those laughing. Francis retired at the age of 30 and was not seriously considered an elite player after the age of 27. Almost 10 career year after this Nash is putting up a career in scoring, just came off a career season leading the 4'th best offense of all time (only surpassed by Magic's showtime Lakers, Bird's Celtic's and MJ's Bulls) with no HOF players on his team... well, except him, because he's cemented himself as a first ballot HOF player.

Where was this evident in 2002 though? You can see the difference in their 'skill stats'. Nash only played 34.6 MPG to Francis' 41.1 meaning that /36 his per game totals were even closer/better.

Nash shot much better from the field (6%), 3 (10%) and the line (12%) indicating he had wildly better shot mechanics which was also evident by watching the many bricks Francis put up when he wasn't close to the cup.

As a ball handler/passer Nash also commits far fewer TO's (over 1 less) a game which is highlighted even more by the fact that as a pass first point guard who got more dimes, Nash made many more risky plays a game dishing to his teammates, and when he was not passing most likely had the ball in his hands running a play.

Francis got more steals but this is more then partly due to his willingness to gamble for them and Nash's religious devotion to never gambling. This discipline is reflected in Nash's much foul rate too as he's not trying to make up for plays he's counted himself out of.

The result is obvious. People under rate skills and over rate natural ability. Francis is putting his feet up on the couch to watch 36 year old Nash is putting up career highs... and he has been for 6 years.

Evans Will Have A Blue Career Without A Jumper

Lets look again at the modern day Francis/Nash of Evans/Curry. Notice the parallels? Evans made sports center like crazy last year and was electric as one of the most athletic guards in the league. But Curry has game that will be effective with or without his athleticism. Tangible skills that are going to carry him through a Hall Of Fame. Evans is a low skill one dimensional player who gets 73% of his field goals directly at the rim, not to mention is only effective scoring with one hand. (note the graphic on the side).

Curry is a high skilled multi-talented player who finishes at the rim with nearly identical effectiveness yet only relies on it for 28% of his field goals. The other 72% come from all over the court including 3 pointers which I don't have to tell you, count for more.

I'll Let Curry's 'Rookie' Shot Chart Have The Last Word

Who's more talented? If you're a student of the game and think about players in terms of careers instead of sports center highlights, I think it's almost obvious Curry wins. Evans might be able to make it on ability for now but it won't last if he doesn't learn how to play more like Curry. Evans can get there, but without remarkably improving his game he will be 'disenFranchised' out of the league in 10 years because he frankly lacks talent. Talent he needs to be a truly great player.

Curry does not need to change his game in the slightest. He's already there. It's so common to misconstrue that athleticism supersedes skill in the talent equation but it's quite the opposite. Curry stands to be a better player at 33 then he is now. Improving at a normal gradual pace his talent will be swishing 3's right into the Hall Of Fame.

But you could see that even before Curry played a minute in the NBA. Observe.