NBA: Biggest NBA bust of all modern time?

[HFCS]

I don’t count Oden as a bust because it was injuries that derailed him. The other guys were just not good. I think Keene Brown is the biggest on the list. Bennet was in a really weak draft.

I never saw Oden play a game in college or NBa where he looked half as good as Durant did in his average game for Texas.

I heard a lot of people on TV tell me he was the greatest of all time, but when I watched him he played like a tired old man.

At Ohio State he looked very good on half court defense. Often disappeared in half court offense. Completely incapable of contributing in transition.

 

[Halincandenza]

I never saw Oden play a game in college or NBa where he looked half as good as Durant did in his average game for Texas.

I heard a lot of people on TV tell me he was the greatest of all time, but when I watched him he played like a tired old man.

At Ohio State he looked very good on half court defense. Often disappeared in half court offense. Completely incapable of contributing in transition.

I thought he looked great at OSU. I mean he played with his opposite hand most of that year at OSU and still put up really good numbers and shot something like 65% from the FT line with his left hand and he was a terrific shot blocker. I think they hype too at that time was that people were still obsessed with the traditional big.

Of course, yeah I thought Durant looked better as well and no doubt that where the game has gone now, I think it is clear Durant is the superior option but still think Oden could have put up great numbers in the NBA without injuries at least for several years. Durant's first half at KU that year was enough of a display to make him the #1 pick.

 

[CycloneErik]

I’m putting together a highlight tape from my old man league and calling an agent. Thanks for the inspiration.

I think I speak for all of us when I say that we'd like to preview that video. Just to help, of course.

 

[HFCS]

I thought he looked great at OSU. I mean he played with his opposite hand most of that year at OSU and still put up really good numbers and shot something like 65% from the FT line with his left hand and he was a terrific shot blocker. I think they hype too at that time was that people were still obsessed with the traditional big.

Of course, yeah I thought Durant looked better as well and no doubt that where the game has gone now, I think it is clear Durant is the superior option but still think Oden could have put up great numbers in the NBA without injuries at least for several years. Durant's first half at KU that year was enough of a display to make him the #1 pick.

Maybe it's that I always hate on the big ten and Ohio State. I didn't get why 15 and 9 with no transition game was the #1 lock pick everyone was talking about. I don't think I'd have taken him #1 even without Durant. I grew up watching Ewing in his prime and Oden as a kid looked slower than middle aged Ewing.

 

[CyState85]

Tough because with Bennett at the time pretty much everybody was like, “yeah, that guy can’t play.” But with Oden having Durant there and the obvious injury red flags, and when it had already become pretty apparent the game was moving away from traditional posts.

I remember the 2013 draft being a crapshoot with who would go #1 and I never thought Bennett had the talent to go as the top pick.

 

[Halincandenza]

Maybe it's that I always hate on the big ten and Ohio State. I didn't get why 15 and 9 with no transition game was the #1 lock pick everyone was talking about. I don't think I'd have taken him #1 even without Durant. I grew up watching Ewing in his prime and Oden as a kid looked slower than middle aged Ewing.

That draft had some really good bigs that did work out though in Horford, Noah and Marc Gasol.

 

[HFCS]

I remember the 2013 draft being a crapshoot with who would go #1 and I never thought Bennett had the talent to go as the top pick.

This year was a crapshoot too.

Ball and Tyrese are both putting up similar or better #s than Edwards. Definitely more efficient.

 

[cydsho]

I feel old with this saying "Modern Times" when no pick is older than 20 years.
And Darko Milicic says hi.

 

[ISUTex]

Fizer was a pretty big bust at the third pick. Oden injuries hurt him. I would say Sam Bowie. Mostly because he sucked, got hurt and was drafted in front of Michael Jordan.

I think Fizer would've been fine had he not blown out his knees. He was also playing with a crappy Bulls team so there's that.

 

[heitclone]

Fizer was a pretty big bust at the third pick. Oden injuries hurt him. I would say Sam Bowie. Mostly because he sucked, got hurt and was drafted in front of Michael Jordan.

Bowie wasn't a bust though, he was a double digit scorer over his 10 year NBA career, despite some horrific injuries. He doesn't belong on a list with the guys in this poll, they couldn't even stick in the league.

 

[ISUTex]

This year was a crapshoot too.

Ball and Tyrese are both putting up similar or better #s than Edwards. Definitely more efficient.

A lot of teams are going to kick themselves for not taking Tyrese.

 

[Cyinthenorth]

I think Fizer would've been fine had he not blown out his knees. He was also playing with a crappy Bulls team so there's that.

He was built like a tank. Unfortunately that didn't mesh well with the type of game he liked to play. For very long at least. Body just couldn't keep up.

 

[JP4CY]

Ivan Chiriaev

 

[AuH2O]

To be fair a center was a pretty valuable asset in 2007. The game has changed massively in a very short period of time

It was, but really Shaq's career was winding down. Yao was probably the only traditional Center that didn't suck, and it looks like the future of the position was having guys like Stoudamire and Howard that ran the floor and had zero back to the basket game.

I think as others have said, you have to probably say Darko as well. While he stuck in the league a while and started games, at the time it was pretty much conventional wisdom that Carmelo was a lock to be a star after Lebron. I'll give them a pass for not picking D Wade, because I don't think it was so clear cut that he would be great.

But pretty much everybody outside of Dumars thought picking Darko over Carmelo was a horrible, horrible idea.

 

[AllInForISU]

Tough because with Bennett at the time pretty much everybody was like, “yeah, that guy can’t play.” But with Oden having Durant there and the obvious injury red flags, and when it had already become pretty apparent the game was moving away from traditional posts.

What injury red flags did Oden have pre draft? He had only had surgery on his wrist before college and didn’t have any red flags publicly before the draft.

 

[CYdTracked]

I think Fizer would've been fine had he not blown out his knees. He was also playing with a crappy Bulls team so there's that.

Floyd and the Bulls did him no favors by drafting him and trying to convert him into a SF because they already had Elton Brand at PF. Bulls got put in a bad spot because they were hoping to get Darius Miles at #4 and the Clippers took him at #3 so their hands were a bit tied. They either should have traded the pick, traded Brand (which they eventually did the next year to draft Tyson Chandler and Eddy Curry (another big bust) or reached to draft another eventual bust as that draft was full of them and guys that never turned into anything more than role players at best. Then they screwed Fizer some more by getting washed up Charles Oakley who they for some reason played him over Fizer more again. It was just never a good fit and makes me wonder if he had been drafted at #3 by the Clippers or #5 by the Magic who both had a need for him at PF that maybe his NBA career would have turned out differently if given the chance to play his natural position right away instead of the Bulls trying to turn him into something he was not.

Oden and Brown were busts for the sole reasons there was so much hype about both coming out of HS and both look badly outmatched talent wise once they got to the NBA. I am looking back on some of those early 2000 drafts and wow there were a lot of busts in those drafts. Could probably add Jay Williams at #2 to the Bulls in 2002. He had a horrible rookie year then had the motorcycle accident that ended his career. Darko at #2 in 2003 is another one but that draft was loaded too with LeBron, Melo, Bosh, and Wade.

I forgot that Thabeet was the #2 overall but I would leave Jimmer off the list because at #10 overall can you really call anyone an all time bust when usually a top 2 or 3 draft pick fits that category? I would put Michael Beasley (#2 in 2008) well before Jimmer on a list like this. This just goes to show that there is no such thing as a sure fire pick that will turn into a star in the NBA draft.

 

[AuH2O]

What injury red flags did Oden have pre draft? He had only had surgery on his wrist before college and didn’t have any red flags publicly before the draft.

I thought he had some foot issues pre draft too, but now that you mentioned the wrist I think I was remembering that wrong.

 

[Drew0311]

I thought he had some foot issues pre draft too, but now that you mentioned the wrist I think I was remembering that wrong.

He had microfracture surgery right after his freshman season and post draft. Sometimes people, including me, remember him having it during the season and that was not true. His leg after the surgery was actually shorter than his other leg. People though he had a limp and that was not the case.

 

[cyclones500]

I think as others have said, you have to probably say Darko as well. While he stuck in the league a while and started games, at the time it was pretty much conventional wisdom that Carmelo was a lock to be a star after Lebron. I'll give them a pass for not picking D Wade, because I don't think it was so clear cut that he would be great.

I would have taken Wade with no hesitation, but admittedly I knew pretty much zilch about Darko.

 

[jbhtexas]

All the guys in the poll did make an NBA roster after their two-year guaranteed contract.

Really, any first round pick, or at least first round top 25 pick that couldn't make a roster after the two guaranteed years is probably a good "bust" candidate, whether the reasons are injuries, emotional, or just lack of NBA talent.

Sorry to go there, but honorable mentions:
Craig Brackins...drafted round 1 at #21, he never made an NBA roster after his second year.
Royce White...drafted round 1 at #16 and played 3 NBA games.