Worst Moments in otherwise Great Careers

[Chronz]

Name them for any of the following;

Iverson:

Bird:

Bron:

Duncan:

Shaq:

KG:

Magic:

MJ:

Kobe:

Hakeem:

Ewing:

Reggie Miller:





These moments can be an entire season, playoff series or a single game occurrence. However you define worst is up to you. To some, Kobe missing the playoffs is low, to others his performance in 04 was his lowest point.


Part of understanding a players greatness is acknowledging his shortcomings, everyone has them.

[lakers4sho]

Magic: Tragic Johnson 1984 vs Celtics
Kobe: 39 point beatdown @ Boston Garden

[Chronz]

Magic: Tragic Johnson 1984 vs Celtics
Kobe: 39 point beatdown @ Boston Garden

Any particular reason these stand out more than your 2nd choice?

[mightybosstone]

I'm going solely off the top of my head, so I can't recall all of them and some might seem weaker than others...

Bron: Two easy ones... The Dallas series is the most obvious, but I would also say the Boston series in which he clearly checked out before the infamous "Decision" is a close second.

Duncan: It's hard to find a low point in his career, but the 08-09 postseason is sort of the first "Is the Spurs run over?" moment. They got beat pretty badly by the Mavs in five.

Shaq/Kobe: For me, both players share the biggest failures of both of their careers. They should have beaten the 2004 Pistons, and their egos never should have gotten in the way of their success as a team. If they could have gotten along and coexisted, the Lakers could have had a Jordanesque-like run of five or six titles.

KG: Can we just say his entire career with Minnesota aside from the Cassell/Sprewell years?

MJ: Everyone remembers Jordan winning six rings in six straight seasons with the two asterisk seasons in between when he was playing baseball. But that's total ********. He came back in the middle of the second season and the Bulls got manhandled by the Shaq/Penny Magic in the playoffs. Nothing bugs me more than when people say the Rockets two titles deserve asterisks, and this is why.

Hakeem: As my favorite all-time player, it's hard to think of the tough moments, but I can think of a few. In 1992, before I was ever a Rockets fan, there was talk of Hakeem being traded, because the Rockets hadn't had any success. The other two big ones I can think of is the failure of the 97-98 team with Barkley and Drexler and him leaving to go to Toronto. Anytime I see an image of him in a Raptors jersey, I immediately forget I ever saw that image and go to my happy place.

Ewing: Anytime he faced another good center in the playoffs, but the 93-94 series against Hakeem really stands out. Ewing choked so often, I wonder if his teammates ever tried to give him the Heimlich maneuver.

[Chronz]

Any thoughts on Reggie?

[JordansBulls]

Any series where the player lost with a better record/HCA and was the favorite is a bad moment.

[JordansBulls]

Any thoughts on Reggie?

1999 vs Knicks. Should never have lost that series.

[JordansBulls]

Magic: Tragic Johnson 1984 vs Celtics
Kobe: 39 point beatdown @ Boston Garden

Honestly those weren't that bad. Celtics both times were favorites. I would look more to series when those players were favorite to win but didn't.

I'm going solely off the top of my head, so I can't recall all of them and some might seem weaker than others...

Bron: Two easy ones... The Dallas series is the most obvious, but I would also say the Boston series in which he clearly checked out before the infamous "Decision" is a close second.

Duncan: It's hard to find a low point in his career, but the 08-09 postseason is sort of the first "Is the Spurs run over?" moment. They got beat pretty badly by the Mavs in five.

Shaq/Kobe: For me, both players share the biggest failures of both of their careers. They should have beaten the 2004 Pistons, and their egos never should have gotten in the way of their success as a team. If they could have gotten along and coexisted, the Lakers could have had a Jordanesque-like run of five or six titles.

KG: Can we just say his entire career with Minnesota aside from the Cassell/Sprewell years?

MJ: Everyone remembers Jordan winning six rings in six straight seasons with the two asterisk seasons in between when he was playing baseball. But that's total ********. He came back in the middle of the second season and the Bulls got manhandled by the Shaq/Penny Magic in the playoffs. Nothing bugs me more than when people say the Rockets two titles deserve asterisks, and this is why.

Hakeem: As my favorite all-time player, it's hard to think of the tough moments, but I can think of a few. In 1992, before I was ever a Rockets fan, there was talk of Hakeem being traded, because the Rockets hadn't had any success. The other two big ones I can think of is the failure of the 97-98 team with Barkley and Drexler and him leaving to go to Toronto. Anytime I see an image of him in a Raptors jersey, I immediately forget I ever saw that image and go to my happy place.

Ewing: Anytime he faced another good center in the playoffs, but the 93-94 series against Hakeem really stands out. Ewing choked so often, I wonder if his teammates ever tried to give him the Heimlich maneuver.

With regard to Ewing I wouldn't say that was a bad moment, Hakeem was the MVP and had HCA in that series. A worse moment for Ewing was 1995 vs the Pacers having HCA and losing game 7 at home and him missing the fingeroll at the buzzer.

For Duncan I would say 2001, getting swept with HCA is pretty bad and also in 2011 losing to the Grizzlies.

MJ - I wouldn't say the Magic series as the Magic were the #1 seed and the Bulls were the #5 seed, but if you are picking something then probably that to just pick something as he never lost when the favorite nor with HCA.


KG -2005-2007 (not making the playoffs in his absolute prime)

Bron - 2010 and 2011 as you have mentioned, but also I would say perhaps 2008 vs Boston, he shot 35% in that series.

Shaq/Kobe - 2004 obviously, but as individual 2011 for Kobe vs Mavs after being swept with HCA and for Shaq probably 1994 vs Indiana being swept with HCA and played badly in comparison to how he usually plays.

Hakeem - 1987 to the Sonics, should never have lost that series to a sub .500 team. Also was pretty bad vs Lakers in 1990 although Lakers were the favorite.

Magic - 1981 losing to a team below .500 and of course 1986 should never had lost to Houston.

Bird - Losing game 7 at home in 1982, getting swept with HCA in 1983, Also losing in 1990 to the Knicks after being up 2-0.

Iverson - The fact he hardly ever made the playoffs is the problem here, he only had 4 series where he had HCA.

[mamba24]

It's hard to narrow down just one "worst moment"...

Iverson: Denver/Detroit/Memphis/2nd time around in Phila

Bird: Cant really think of one

Bron: "The Decision", disappearing in the Finals vs. Dallas, hairline

Duncan: Cant really think of one

Shaq: Coming into almost every training camp out of shape during the course of his NBA career, cant let go of bitterness towards DH12 post career

KG: I dont know who he did this too but I remember seeing it on ESPN... Giving an opponent a nut punch on a jump shot, "Anything is possibbbbbbbbbbbllllllllle!"

Magic: uh.... HIV....

MJ: Baseball and the Wizards

Kobe: Eagle Colorado, Kobe/Shaq feud, Kobe/Smush mini-feud, Game 7 in Phoenix where it appeared Kobe threw in the towel from opening tip

Hakeem: Changing his name from Hakeem to Akeem and back to Hakeem

Ewing: Miss layup vs the Pacers in the playoffs with the game/series on the line

Reggie Miller: Never being a better player than his sister... Ever...

[Sactown]

Honestly those weren't that bad. Celtics both times were favorites. I would look more to series when those players were favorite to win but didn't.




With regard to Ewing I wouldn't say that was a bad moment, Hakeem was the MVP and had HCA in that series. A worse moment for Ewing was 1995 vs the Pacers having HCA and losing game 7 at home and him missing the fingeroll at the buzzer.

For Duncan I would say 2001, getting swept with HCA is pretty bad and also in 2011 losing to the Grizzlies.

MJ - I wouldn't say the Magic series as the Magic were the #1 seed and the Bulls were the #5 seed, but if you are picking something then probably that to just pick something as he never lost when the favorite nor with HCA.


KG -2005-2007 (not making the playoffs in his absolute prime)

Bron - 2010 and 2011 as you have mentioned, but also I would say perhaps 2008 vs Boston, he shot 35% in that series.

Shaq/Kobe - 2004 obviously, but as individual 2011 for Kobe vs Mavs after being swept with HCA and for Shaq probably 1994 vs Indiana being swept with HCA and played badly in comparison to how he usually plays.

Hakeem - 1987 to the Sonics, should never have lost that series to a sub .500 team. Also was pretty bad vs Lakers in 1990 although Lakers were the favorite.

Magic - 1981 losing to a team below .500 and of course 1986 should never had lost to Houston.

Bird - Losing game 7 at home in 1982, getting swept with HCA in 1983, Also losing in 1990 to the Knicks after being up 2-0.

Iverson - The fact he hardly ever made the playoffs is the problem here, he only had 4 series where he had HCA.

You over value HCA so much.. there's more to basketball than HCA and Vegas betting odds

[Chronz]

Any series where the player lost with a better record/HCA and was the favorite is a bad moment.

False. Dont live or die with generalizations. Thats why people have a hard time taking you seriously these days JB, you ignore all concept of context and live by copy and paste.

[JordansBulls]

You over value HCA so much.. there's more to basketball than HCA and Vegas betting odds

I understand that, and I understand that at times you lose as the favorite but at the same time when you are an elite player and superstar and you are the favorite you should win the series. It's one thing when you play a team that had a star player out for while and then came back and you lost but it is another when you had the better record all year long and you are playing a team your level or below and you lose as the favorite.

[JordansBulls]

False. Dont live or die with generalizations. Thats why people have a hard time taking you seriously these days JB, you ignore all concept of context and live by copy and paste.

Well it depends. Barkley losing to MJ in 1993 and then losing to Hakeem in 1995 is not a big deal because at least he lost to superior players.

I've always felt that the team with the better record and the better Star Player should win the series.

the 2005 Suns had the best record but the Spurs had the best player in Duncan
2011 the Bulls had the best record, but the Heat had the better players (Wade, Lebron)


On the other hand, 2004 Lakers had the better record and the better star (Kobe, Shaq). 2005 Heat had the better record and better star (Wade, Shaq)
2011 Heat had the better record and star and higher SRS rating.

[mamba24]

A lot of comments here are in reference to losing a series... I dont think I could ever put a series loss on the shoulders of one person no matter who it is. Basketball is a team game. It's never fair to blame a series loss on one guy.

[JordansBulls]

A lot of comments here are in reference to losing a series... I dont think I could ever put a series loss on the shoulders of one person no matter who it is. Basketball is a team game. It's never fair to blame a series loss on one guy.

But why would one guy get most of the credit then as well. You can't say if they win it was because of so and so and when they lose as the favorite it is a team game. Now if you lose when you are the underdog against a team with more talent that is one thing, but when you have same talent or more and you lose as the favorite that is another.