You can let one NBA career "what if" become reality

[Mr Puddles]

Imagine the following situation. You've just been unjustly convincted of a crime you didn't commit and now find yourself in prison. On your first day in lock up a burly inmate named Big Bob informs you that he's just bought you for half a pack of Lucky Strikes and a roll of Cottonelle toilet paper. He adds that you have pretty eyes. Terrified of having become Bob's property, but oddly flattered by your competitive market price, you start devising a plan to escape. You decide to buy a poster of Rita Haywood and tunnel yourself out of prison. While digging you stumble upon a lamp. After rubbing it a genie appears who grants you three wishes. Your first wish is to be relieved of all charges, your second wish is money, and for your third wish you decide to let one NBA 'what if' career become reality. What would you choose.

Poll options:


• Arvydas enters the NBA at age 18, there's no soviet restrictions, he doesn't get injured and NBA scouting is at the same level as in today's NBA.
• Manigault never develops his addiction and legal problems, plays collegue bball and plays in the NBA.
• Len Bias doesn't overdose and enters the NBA.
• Bill Walton doesnt get injured and has a lengthy nba career.
• Greg Oden doesnt get injured and has a lengthy nba career.
• Petrovic gets drafted properly, benefiting from today's level of NBA scouting, he also doesn't suffer an early demise and plays out his nba career.
• Grant Hill doesn't suffer the injury that cut his career short.
• Olympic rule change takes place earlier allowing Oscar Schmidt to enter the NBA in his prime.
• Other, e.g. Penny, Rose etc.

Note: the answer should be strictly based on basketball purposes, i.e. what you as a basketball fan would like to see. Moral considerations related to guys like Drazen, Manigault, Bias should not be taken into consideration.

[Plutonashfan]

What if Brandon Roy had cartilage in his knees?

[Capn'O]

My head says Sabonis but my heart says Oden. Oden came up when the last of the great 90s centers (Shaq) was finally slowing down. I love the big bruisers and was really excited for Oden's career.

[SHAQ32]

Len Bias, for sure.

[bkkrh]

My head says Sabonis but my heart says Oden. Oden came up when the last of the great 90s centers (Shaq) was finally slowing down. I love the big bruisers and was really excited for Oden's career.

Your post actually convinced me for Oden. Healthy Oden would have filled that huge gap of quality Centers during that period.

[Sane]

Sabonis would probably end up pretty similar to Jokic so I’ll go with him.

[pipfan]

As a Bulls' fan, Rose of course. I think they win the 2012 title and maybe another one. Rose/Butler (drafted in 2011)/Deng/Taj/Noah is an epic lineup to go on a 5 year run with

As an NBA fan, Bias for sure

[UcanUwill]

As a Lithuanian I will say Sabonis here, but I feel everything went wrong for Ricky Rubio also, I would want to redo his career, because I feel we got the worst possible outcome with Ricky, injury, depression, game shifting from pure pgs, etc.

[SA37]

For me, it has to be either Drazen Petrovic or Grant Hill.

[gavran]

Penny. Why the f is he an "Other" option, while Oden is not?

[JinKaz69]

Penny. Why the f is he an "Other" option, while Oden is not?

Same here.
It's a huge disrespect to Penny.
(Oden during his short time when healthy was good but he never was all-NBA and MVP material like Penny)

[Mr Puddles]

Penny. Why the f is he an "Other" option, while Oden is not?

Same here.
It's a absolute joke and huge disrespect to Penny.
(Oden during his short healthy time was good but he never was a 1st team all-NBA guy and MVP material like Penny)

OP also didn't care to mention Brandon Roy or Bernard King. Clearly this dude doesn't understand basketball at all.

The Penny thing alone is honestly ban worthy. I've contacted the mods to voice my frustration that a fine website like RealGM would sully its reputation by allowing a presence such as Mr Puddles to roam around free disrespecting and tarnishing Penny Hardaway's name and legacy.

[Kingdibs19]

As a Lithuanian I will say Sabonis here, but I feel everything went wrong for Ricky Rubio also, I would want to redo his career, because I feel we got the worst possible outcome with Ricky, injury, depression, game shifting from pure pgs, etc.

You listen to Bill Simmons podcasts don’t you? He said this exact same thing before

[UcanUwill]

As a Lithuanian I will say Sabonis here, but I feel everything went wrong for Ricky Rubio also, I would want to redo his career, because I feel we got the worst possible outcome with Ricky, injury, depression, game shifting from pure pgs, etc.

You listen to Bill Simmons podcasts don’t you? He said this exact same thing before

I do not listen to him anymore, but yeah, this is pretty obvious one. Simmons does that exercise, simulate guys career 20 times, are most careers would be better or worse than what we got, and with Rubio, it is obvious the one we got would be one of the worst, most things that could go wrong, went wrong for him.

[SkyHook]

I chose other for Ralph Sampson.

•Hall of Fame
•3x POY in college
•ROY
•All-star his first four seasons
•All-star MVP in his 2nd year
•1x all-NBA 2nd team
•Finals appearance in his 3rd season

Only three fully healthy seasons, he missed the ASG his 4th year due to injury... the beginning of the end. I often wonder where he would rank in the basketball pantheon had he been the picture of health his entire career.

[Optms]

Len Bias. Easy choice.

[art_tatum]

Gotta mention Yao too. He had some really untimely injuries just as he hit his prime.
One where he was leading in the MVP race half way through and goes down for a year.
One where they were on a run into the playoffs and up against Kobe/paus Lakers where he went down in an OT win.
And just all the other injuries / national team/ onditioning choices by the rockets ( making Yao too thick) prevented us from seeing his peak peak and a healthy run. Imo he would've been better if he didn't gain all that muscle weight and was slightly more nibble bc irc van gundy wanted him to be immovable

[TravisScott55]

Well it seems pretty easy to choose preventing a man from dying

[GrindCityHustle]

Brandon Roy retires as a member of the Laker bubble team

Vince Carter plays on that Raptors championship team with Kawhi and we just pretend he never got traded to NJ

[Tomtolbert]

For purely basketball reasons, Sabonis.

Maurice Stokes is up there too. Very tragic.