Hoops Habit
Fansided

NBA Injuries: 20 Stars Who Deserve A Career Do-Over

By Gerald Bourguet

AUBURN HILLS, UNITED STATES: Detroit Pistons player Grant Hill (L) drives around Indiana Pacers player Chris Mullin during the first half of their game 07 February at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The Pistons beat the Pacers 107-98. AFP PHOTO/JEFF KOWALSKY (Photo credit should read JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP/Getty Images)
AUBURN HILLS, UNITED STATES: Detroit Pistons player Grant Hill (L) drives around Indiana Pacers player Chris Mullin during the first half of their game 07 February at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The Pistons beat the Pacers 107-98. AFP PHOTO/JEFF KOWALSKY (Photo credit should read JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
17 of 21
Next
NBA Injuries
(Original Caption) Last season, the Houston Rockets had a 7-foot inch center, named Ralph Sampson, (R), who averaged 21 points and more than 11 rebounds a game and was named Rookie of the Year. So what did the rockets do on Draft Day? They selected a 7-foot center, Akeem Olajuwon, from the school in their backyard, the University of Houston. /

5. Ralph Sampson

Once upon a time, Ralph Sampson was supposed to be the next big thing coming out of college. A 7’4″ goliath, Sampson was a three-time College Player of the Year who thoroughly dominated his competition at Virginia, even if his team’s defeat in the 1983 NCAA championship game gave rise to yet another inspirational 30 For 30 on Jim Valvano.

Lack of NCAA hardware aside, Sampson was the hands down No. 1 pick of the 1983 NBA Draft, going to the Houston Rockets and winning Rookie of the Year honors on monster averages of 21.0 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and 2.0 assists per game. Like asking Sampson to raise his arms above his head, the sky was the limit for this kid’s potential.

When Houston added Hakeem Olajuwon to the mix with the top pick in the 1984 NBA Draft, the Rockets had created the first ever Twin Towers lineup of that magnitude. In an era where the three-point shot didn’t yet dominate the game, Houston swallowed up opponents’ shots in the paint and dominated them down low.

Statistically, however, Sampson peaked in his first season alongside Olajuwon, averaging 22.1 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.0 blocks per game, which was even more impressive since Hakeem’s arrival moved Sampson to the power forward spot. The Rockets improved their win total by 19 from the prior year, reaching the playoffs in a 48-win season.

Both members of the Twin Towers made the All-Star Game, and Sampson won MVP honors for the game with 24 points and 10 boards. The following season, he made an impossible game-winning turnaround jump shot in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals to close out the Lakers and advance Houston to the 1986 NBA Finals.

The Rockets lost in a tough six-game series to the legendary Celtics, but they had proven themselves as talented up-and-comers under Sampson’s leadership. Unfortunately, a myriad of knee and back injuries limited Sampson to 43 games in 1986-87 and he fell out of favor with the Rockets’ head coach, subsequently being traded to the Warriors halfway through the 1987-88 season.

He played only 48 games total that season, with his numbers and minutes drastically declining in Golden State. He played 61 games over his final three seasons in the league, eventually being released by the Sacramento Kings and being waived by the Washington Bullets after a 10-day stint in 1991-92.

In 10 NBA seasons, Ralph Sampson played only 441 games. For a player once predicted to be one of the greatest NBA prospects of all time, his professional career was only injury-laden nightmare that prevented him from ever matching the hype.

Next: No. 4