shawn respert and randolph childress were 2 of my fav college players growing up...not sure if either played in the nba after dominating college

 

Originally Posted by rocksolid124

Obv OP is confused about the question he himself was asking. Thankfully, we have Syphon to clarify what OP really meant subconsciously.

thats cool and all but man you said SHAQ!! he won like 5 titles and finshed in something like top 5 scorer and center of all time. was Shaq supposed to win 10 titles and most points and rebounds ever? that title says woulda, coulda, should've and didnt. I see that as someone who had elite skills and all time great talent and fell off

guess the range is much wider than I thought. Ill add Terrell Owens, Chris Carter, Barry Sanders, Griffey Jr, ARod.

Michael Jordan could have won 9 rings if he wasn't such a fucking disappointment

Cal Ripken Jr

How the fuck have we gotten to page 4, and nobody has mentioned Lawrence Phillips? Guy should have been an all-timer but pissed it all away and is now serving 25 to life.

Also, as an SC homer, gotta throw RJ Soward out there. Biggest headcase in the world but still got drafted in the late 1st by Jacksonville but threw it all away.

 

Originally Posted by SyphonSoul

thats cool and all but man you said SHAQ!! he won like 5 titles and finshed in something like top 5 scorer and center of all time. was Shaq supposed to win 10 titles and most points and rebounds ever? that title says woulda, coulda, should've and didnt. I see that as someone who had elite skills and all time great talent and fell off

I do think Shaq WOULDA, COULDA, and SHOULD'VE been much better if he wasn't so notoriously lazy as fuck, which is a huge testament to how great his talent was. Obviously he's an all time great, but OP didn't say "What guy that wasn't an all time great could have been" as your private interpretation of the OP's intention was. His post simply asked who woulda, coulda, shoulda?

I think you could add Arvydas Sabonis to the list. If he would have came to the NBA early in his career he probably goes down as a top 5 center of all time.

 

Originally Posted by Bball23

I think you could add Arvydas Sabonis to the list. If he would have came to the NBA early in his career he probably goes down as a top 5 center of all time.

not your vydas

 

Originally Posted by rocksolid124

Sergio's just sad to watch. You just know he's gonna come up short always. And then when he said he doesn't think he has what it takes to win a major? Holy what the fuck

Yeah, he's definitely a choke-artist of the highest order. He truly embodies the 'Would of, could have been,' whereas, I think Payne Stewart represents the 'Could have, should have been.' Payne was already an amazing golfer... I wonder how many Majors he could have taken off of Tiger's count, if he had only been alive and competing during the TWoods Era.

 

Originally Posted by ZachL

Gotta agree with syphon here.. Don't get how some of these athletes that are considered some of the best are even mentioned.. I would think something like a rising star ends up going to jail, or a career injury which leads him to not be able to play.. not someone who had a 15 year career and was considered an all-star.. otherwise we might as well put Wayne Gretzky on the list and say he shoulda had 200 points every season.. not just 3 times considering he was a lazy fuck outside the game.. lol how does anyone even know a sport stars personal habits except through media bias.

Media bias apparently includes teammates comments, coach's comments, and excerpts from his own book.

 

Jackson, who once upon a time seemed to favor his star center over his star shooting guard, on Sunday called out O’Neal, saying he was “the only person I’ve ever had that hasn’t been a worker.”

O’Neal and Bryant had been feuding since O’Neal’s trade to Miami following the 2003-04 season. But last year the two superstars stated publicly that they had reconciled their differences.

Then came Jackson’s comments on Sunday.

“He’s the one guy that didn’t really like to work,” said the coach who boasts nine NBA championship rings. “I know Pat [Riley] got him working here in Miami. We had a hard time getting him to work. All the other players — Michael [Jordan], Scottie [Pippen], Dennis Rodman, all those guys that we had, Horace Grant, they’re all hard-working practice and personal work players.”

It's kinda common knowledge that Shaq was considered lazy league-wide...it's not media bias at all...

Phil Jackson also wanted to trade Kobe Bryant because he is the most selfish uncoachable player he has ever had

Shaq is probably top 5 all time

The best two answers in this thread by far are Marcus Dupree and JR Richard

 

Originally Posted by Bballmike222

I was just thinking Ken Griffey Jr. I know he was great but always felt he had potential to be one of, if not, the best player ever.

+ 1

Griffey Jr. may have gone down as the GOAT ... if he hadn't gotten hurt so much ... and if he hadn't been compared to a bunch of roided up freaks from the same era. Imagine no massively inflated numbers from Sosa, Mcgwire, Bonds, Arod, etc. -- and a healthy Griffey.