"Busts" Who Bounced Back

[dc]

Jermaine O'Neal?

Not really. He was 17 when he was drafted. He sat on the Blazers bench for 3 years, but Portland still gave him something like a 3 year, $18M extension even though he did next to nothing. You wouldn't give that kind of contract to a bust.

They kept him because they knew the talent he had and he just wasn't getting PT behind the likes of Rasheed and Brian Grant.

[RaptorPride]

DeMar?

[zimpy27]

I'd say Len is about to bounce back

[ZemGOAT]

Jahlil Okafor this season

[Duke4life831]

Redick comes to mind. 11th overall pick that took him till he was 29 years old to become an everyday starter. Honestly thought after his 2nd year he would be out of the league within a couple years. Turned it around to become a damn solid starter in his career and a guy every team wants to have.

I was just a kid at the time, but didnt it take Nash a few years to start looking like he belonged in the league.

Okafor was on the brink of being out of the league last summer, really got himself into shape and if he continues to progress he should be a solid rotation big (still can probably be considered a bust though).

I wouldnt consider guys like Oladipo and Russell busts. Oladipo was improving every single year, and Russell was in a horrible situation but still putting up solid numbers for a 20-21 year old.

[ProspectPark]

Austin Rivers

[Showdown]

Bruno Caboclo

[druggas]

Kwame Brown is the correct answer.

[gorz]

Tyson Chandler is the first name that came to mind. He didn't do much his first few years in the league and ended up becoming one of the premier defensive big men and played a huge role in Dirk winning his first and only ring.

[nomansland]

Lonzo Ball. Pops and the Spurs didn't want him. Lakers traded his arse.

Malik Beasley. Now, he can shoot the 3-pt shot.

Markelle Fultz. LOL.

Beasley was projected to be a lottery pick until he hurt his knee, and then was picked at 19, considered to be a bit of a reach by Denver at the time.

Hardly enough hype to be considered a bust. Nor has he exactly bounced back fully either. He's still coming off the bench in Denver.

Could be a breakout year for him though, fingers crossed.

[Slartibartfast]

Kemba Walker deserves a mention here. Started off as an inefficient chucker and turned himself into an all Star. Ditto DeRozan.

[Buzzard]

Steve Nash was a 15th pick who averaged 8 points, 5 assists, and 2 turnovers while shooting 36% on FG's in his 3rd season when he was 24. He wasn't much better in his 4th season. It wasn't till his 5th season, when he was 26, that hs started to put things together

Nash and Billups are the poster children for late bloomers. They are also, in my mind, a main reason people think point guards take longer to develop than bigs.

[Buzzard]

James Johnson is the 1st name that comes to mind. He was a bust on his rookie deal and then flopped around for a bit, and in his 6th-7th year he finally became a solid and pretty valuable rotation guy.

Some guys like Mudiay, Len, and Vonleh have a chance--I'd consider them full busts since they got dumped for nothing from the team that drafted them and right now could be had for almost nothing.

Alex Len can actually play. He was good for the Hawks last year and he can stretch the floor now. I won't be surprised if he gets a decent contract next summer.

Len turned things around last season. He averaged roughly 15 PTS, 6 TRB, and 1 Block over his last 20 games. All that in just 24 minutes a game. At just per 30 minutes, those are some really good numbers. Efficient numbers ( .600 TS% ) as well. If John Collins does not slide over to the Center spot this season, most Hawks fans are expecting some good play from Len as a starter this year.

And you are right with this too. At 26, 27 staring next season, he could be looking at a really nice payday next season in free agency.

[Fencer reregistered]

Jermaine O'Neal?

There was a serious bidding war to trade for him when he was in Portland, so he's probably not a good example.

And while Chris Webber was dumped quickly by the Warriors, I don't recall him being thought of as a bust either.

White Chocolate had some bouncing back to do, but IIRC he was second in RotY voting, so not exactly a bust.

Shaun Livingston seems like a good example only if we count injury-driven busts.

Chauncey Billups is the best example I've seen so far.

[TurboTitan]

Stanley Johnson will finally turn into prime Artest this year

[Invictus88]

Kwame Brown is the correct answer.

wha?

[Stillwater]

Winslow comes to mind
followed by Randle

[LakersLegacy]

Who are some of the most prevalent example of players who fans, media, and perhaps people in the league wrote off as busts that redeemed themselves?

I think some people pegged Embiid as a Greg Oden case.

There's Oladipo

Marcus Camby struggled in Toronto and was buried on the Knicks' bench for a while

Marvin Williams

D'Angelo Russell (whose season, forgive me, I think was generally wayyy overrated)

Chauncey Billups is a noted late bloomer


Who else?

The Lakers TRASH players ... Julius Randle and spin to be Ingram, Zo and Heart. Amazing how changing teams does that for Lakers players.

Jermaine ONeal after the Blazers
Ron Artest after the Bulls

[Kabookalu]

The first player that actually came to mind was Zach Randolph, although given he was selected 19th overall and was almost always seen as a cancer maybe he was never in a position to even be considered a bust.

[Fencer reregistered]

How about Tyson Chandler? A few years into his career people didn't expect the kind of respect his career now gets.