Wasted Talent

 “I’m looking at a franchise player. Someone you can
build a championship around.”

These were the words Hall of Fame guard Calvin Murphy
used to describe Eddie Griffin during his rookie year
in Houston.

Back then Griffin was seen as a pillar of potential
who would inevitably become an All-Star, a player
deemed to emerge as the face and saviour of the
Rockets.

That same year (then All-Star) Steve Francis said of
Griffin: “The kid’s only 19 years old and he’ll
probably end up playing here longer than I will.”

But Griffin didn’t play long at all. His NBA story,
culminating in his tragic death last month, took a
very different slant to the success that was expected.
It was a story which saw him struggle with his
self-destructive demons. A story of his battle to stay
interested in the game he was so good at. And
ultimately, a story about wasted talent and a life
squandered.

Like Griffin, there have been countless players full
of promise but, for whatever reason, never succeeded
in realising their full potential. Here are 5:

1. Len Bias - Simply put, Bias would have been great.
If he hadn’t stuck his nose in that pile of yeyo he
wouldn’t have died 48 hours after being selected
second by the Celtics in the 1986 draft and he would
have gone on to be one of the game’s best.

2. The rest of the doomed draft - along with Bias, the
1986 draft featured a trio of disappointments: Chris
Washburn, Roy Tarpley and William Bedford.

Washburn, considered one of the biggest draft busts in
NBA history, had talent in spades but also had an
insatiable appetite for the narcotics. After failing
three straight drug tests he was banned from the
league for life in 1989.

Similarly, Tarpley and Bedford’s promising careers
were scuppered by their passion for nose candy.

3. Derrick Coleman - DC could do it all: Bang inside,
finesse you down low, shoot the long ball, pass like a
pure point man. He also possessed some of the sickest
handles ever seen from a big guy (if you don’t believe
me, check out NBA Superstars 3). He could have been
one of the greatest players the league has ever seen,
let alone one of the greatest power forwards.

But, for some reason, Coleman wasn’t interested in all
of that “greatness“ stuff. Instead, the George Foreman
look-a-like coasted for 15 years, seemingly content
with being average and out of shape.

4. Bonzi Wells - Bonzi is a bundle of talent,
evidenced by his showing in the Sacramento Kings' 2006
playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs where he
averaged 23.2 points and 12 rebounds (including more
than 4 offensive boards) per game over 6 games.

But if Wells doesn’t bring it on a consistent basis
soon, he’s going to be looking back on a wasted
career.

Notorious for being a bad egg, Wells seems happier
causing havoc for his own team and coaches rather than
the opposition.

As former NBA player Tom Tolbert once said: “If you’ve
got that much ability and you’re traded three times
that early in your career there’s obviously something
wrong with you.”


5. Grant Hill and Penny Hardaway - Sure, injuries have
cut many an NBA career short, but none have robbed the
league of more talented players than Hill and
Hardaway. Early on, both these guys were on track for
Hall of Fame careers. After injury, they were little
more than role players.