The Worst Player Ever from Every NBA Franchise
From draft bust to free agency flameout to the one that got away, we pick the worst player ever for all 30 NBA franchises
Not every NBA player can go down as an all-time great. Some players are just forgettable, but it’s the ones that are memorably bad that hurt the most. Every single NBA team has a worst player of all time, but some of them sting a little more than the others. Some NBA players are such busts they keep both fans and general managers up at night wondering what might have been.
Maybe it’s because they were a top-five draft pick that never turned out. Perhaps they were a marquee free-agent signing gone wrong, one that ate up valuable cap space for years to come. Sometimes worst of all is the player that only reminds teams of a guy they don’t have, the one that got away.
We already covered the best player from every NBA team. These are the worst players on every franchise in the NBA…
Atlanta Hawks — Ed Macauley
Poor Ed Macauley never asked for this. In 1956 Macauley was living the high life, coming off six consecutive All-Star seasons for the Boston Celtics. That year Boston traded Macauley and rookie Cliff Hagan for another rookie named Bill Russell who would go on to change their franchise forever. Russell played 13 seasons and won 11 championships and five MVP awards. Macauley made only one more All-Star Game for the Hawks, then played two more forgettable seasons and retiring. Believe it or not, Ed Macauley is in the Basketball Hall of Fame today, thanks to his contributions to the Celtics. But his biggest contribution to Boston was no doubt the player he took away from the Atlanta Hawks.
Boston Celtics — Len Bias
The 80s Celtics could do no wrong. They watched Larry Bird turn into a superstar, turned Joe Barry Carroll into Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, and won three NBA championships in six seasons as they ruled the early 80s. In 1984, they offloaded Gerald Henderson for a future pick, then watched that pick become number two overall in the 1986 draft, a luxury akin to the modern-day Warriors lucking into Zion Williamson next year. The Celtics drafted talented young big man Len Bias out of Maryland and looked set to rule the NBA for another five or ten years. But Bias died two days later from cardiac arrhythmia induced by cocaine overdose and obviously never played for Boston. The Celtics dynasty was cut short, and fans can only wonder what might have been.
Brooklyn Nets — Dennis Hopson
The New Jersey Nets owned the number three pick in the 1987 draft and used it on Ohio State wing Dennis Hopson. Hopson never quite found his footing, improving gradually over three seasons before being offloaded unceremoniously in a trade. Maybe the Nets should have taken the Central Arkansas wing that went two picks after Hopson, one Scottie Pippen. If not Pippen, they might have picked up Reggie Miller, Kevin Johnson, or Horace Grant, all among the next ten picks. It was a huge miss for the Nets.
Charlotte Hornets — Vlade Divac
Surprised to not see Adam Morrison’s name here? Morrison was quite the stinker, but he’s not the most painful name Charlotte fans see scrolling through their draft history. That’s because that list includes the thirteenth pick in the 1996, a high school kid named Kobe Bean Bryant. Kobe was officially a Charlotte draft pick, but they traded him for veteran Lakers center Vlade Divac. Davic played two seasons in Charlotte before leaving in free agency. Oops.
Chicago Bulls — Tyrus Thomas
Remember when the Bulls drafted LaMarcus Aldridge with the second pick of the 2006 draft? Most Chicago fans don’t either. The Bulls traded the rights to Aldridge for number four pick Tyrus Thomas, hoping to pair him with Eddy Curry to bring back the glory days of the 90s. The Twin Towers pairing never got off the ground for the Bulls as Thomas farted his way through four meaningless seasons, and Aldridge just played in his seventh All-Star Game and is still going strong.
Cleveland Cavaliers — Anthony Bennett
It’s still recent, but it looks like Anthony Bennett will go down as one of the biggest number one pick busts in NBA draft history. Bennett was unplayable as a rookie, averaging under 13 terrible minutes a game. He was so bad the Cavs gave up on him after just one season, lumping him in with Andrew Wiggins in a trade for Kevin Love once LeBron James came back into town. Bennett played on four teams in four years before heading to Europe for a stint. He’s currently plying his trade in the G-League at the tender age of 25.
Dallas Mavericks — Randy White
A lot of memorable names were drafted in 1989, including Shawn Kemp, Vlade Divac, Glen Rice, Tim Hardaway, Mookie Blaylock, Clifford Robinson, Nick Anderson, Sean Elliott, and others. One name you won’t often see on that list? The number eight pick, Randy White. Dallas took White out of Louisiana Tech and he barely cleared 40% shooting for his career and never averaged double-digit points in any season.
Denver Nuggets — Nikoloz Tskitishvili
The Nuggets rolled the dice with the number five pick in the 2002 draft, selecting Georgian (the country, not the state) prospect Nikoloz Tskitishvili, and Skita was one of the biggest busts in recent memory. He never even averaged four points a game, and he didn’t even play double digit minutes any year after his rookie season. Tskitishvili shot 30% for his career — not a typo — and was out of the league entirely in four years.
Detroit Pistons — Darko Milicic
The Pistons made the Conference Finals in 2003 and then had the number two pick in the draft a few weeks later thanks to a savvy trade years before. They wouldn’t get the chance to pick high school phenom LeBron James, but in a draft with Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade, it was hard to go wrong. Enter Darko. Milicic could barely get on the floor his rookie season as the Pistons won the championship, and it didn’t get much better from there. He bounced around the league for a decade before retiring to kickboxing and owns an apple orchard in Serbia today, but he’ll always be remembered as one of the biggest busts in NBA history.
Golden State Warriors — Joe Barry Carroll
Philadelphia 76ers fans may cringe reading this one. The Warriors made a big move prior to the 1980 draft, trading up from number three to number one for a Purdue player named Joe Barry Carroll that they just couldn’t pass. Though they moved up only two spots, the trade cost the Warriors dearly as they also lost talented young center Robert Parish. The Boston Celtics dropped from one to three and got the best player in the draft, Kevin McHale, and the two were the spine of the Celtics dynasty in the 80s. Carroll averaged at least 17 points a game all six Warriors seasons, but he had a knack for not playing with enough heart, earning the nickname Joe Barely Cares, and most importantly, he just wasn’t Kevin McHale or Robet Parish.
Houston Rockets — Steve Francis
Things certainly started out well enough for Stevie Franchise. He was an All-Star by his third season and played well enough to play his way into a monster six year extension worth $84 million. In the extension’s first year, Francis turned in his worst season as a pro and clashed with Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy so much the Rockets were forced to trade him. Francis and his awful contract went on to plague four teams in total before he headed to China to ply his trade.
Indiana Pacers — Rick Robey
Unless you’re a longtime Pacers fan, you’ve probably never heard of Rick Robey. Robey was the Pacers’ number three pick in the 1978 draft, a University of Kentucky star the Pacers kept close to home. Robey was a bust, starting only 46 games over eight seasons and averaging 7.6 points per game for his career. He didn’t last long in Indiana as the Pacers shipped him out in a trade his second season to the Boston Celtics, a team that had picked three spots later in the 1978 draft. They had also taken a player local to the Pacers, a talented Hick from French Lick named Larry Bird. That’s right. Indiana had the opportunity to take the hometown kid and passed him up. For Rick Robey.
Los Angeles Clippers — Michael Olowokandi
The Clippers moved from Buffalo to San Diego to Los Angeles without making the playoffs for 15 years into the 90s, but they hit rock bottom again going 17–65 in 1998 en route to landing the number one pick. They used it on raw Nigerian big man Michael Olowokandi, who abruptly led the team to an even worse record the next two seasons. The Kandi Man somehow shot under 44% for his career despite standing seven feet tall, and the Clippers had nothing to show for a number one pick in a draft featuring Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce, and Vince Carter.
Los Angeles Lakers — Timofey Mozgov
The summer of 2016 was home to a billion dollars in bad contracts, but Mozgov was the first contract announced just minutes after the clock struck midnight on July 1. The Lakers just couldn’t wait to throw $64 million at the Russian NBA champion. It felt like a bad deal instantly and got worse with time, and Mozgov was so obviously useless the Lakers had to include former number two pick and current All-Star D’Angelo Russell just to get the Brooklyn Nets to take him. You think Russell might have been good with LeBron, or maybe a valuable trade chip for Anthony Davis?
Memphis Grizzlies — Hasheem Thabeet
There were a lot of questions about Hasheem Thabeet’s motor, heart, and drive coming out of the University of Connecticut, but that didn’t stop the Grizzlies from selecting him second in the 2009 draft, just after Blake Griffin. Thabeet was supposed to be a block party but turned into a foul machine instead and couldn’t even stay on the court, starting just 20 games in his entire career. Bet Memphis wishes they’d picked the guy that went right after Thabeet, or maybe the guard that went a few picks later. Can you imagine James Harden and Steph Curry in a Memphis uniform?
Miami Heat — Michael Beasley
The Heat used the second pick in the 2008 draft on Michael Beasley, who looked like a star out of Kansas State. Two years later the Heat saw LeBron James and Chris Bosh join Dwyane Wade in South Beach, and Beasley might have been the perfect fourth banana. Instead he was deemed so bad that he was traded in essentially a salary dump. Beasley’s still bouncing around the league. He’s been on not one team. Not too. Not three, not four, not five. Not six, not seven…
Milwaukee Bucks — Robert Traylor
The Dallas Mavericks actually drafted Traylor with the sixth pick of the 1998 draft, but they traded him almost immediately in a package that included the number nine pick. “Tractor” Traylor was familiar to the locals after dominating the Big Ten, but he was a complete bust for the Bucks, struggling with weight issues and injuries before flaming out. The pick the Bucks gave to Dallas? That turned into Dirk Nowitzki.
Minnesota Timberwolves — Joe Smith
Maybe you expected Jonny Flynn aka Not Steph Curry, or perhaps you’re reserving this spot for Andrew Wiggins someday. But don’t overlook the damage that former number one pick Joe Smith did to this franchise. Smith signed as a free agent in Minnesota in 1999 on a shockingly cheap contract, so cheap in fact that it was illegal. Smith agreed to a cheap deal under the table so he could get more money later, and when NBA commissioner David Stern found out, he crushed the Wolves, stripping them of five consecutive first round picks from 2001 to 2005 at the heart of Kevin Garnett’s prime. The Wolves never reached the highest heights thanks to the dearth of young talent and would miss the playoffs 14 consecutive seasons.
New Orleans Pelicans — Solomon Hill
The Pelicans haven’t been around long enough to have any truly terrible players, and they trade away so many first round picks that they don’t have too many egregious busts. He’s here instead for the horrible $48 million deal he signed with the Pelicans in the summer of 2016 in what was the beginning of the end for the Anthony Davis experience in New Orleans. Hill parlayed one hot playoff series with the Pacers into a fat paycheck and a starting job with the Pels, but he’s averaged under six points a game on 38% shooting and continues to tie up an important chunk of their cap room.
New York Knicks — Jerome James
The Knicks were by far the most difficult choice on the list. Allan Houston signed a contract so bad the league created a rule allowing teams to get out of a terrible deal and named it after him. Charles Smith missed 800 straight shots at the rim to cost the Knicks their one shot to topple Michael Jordan. Eddy Curry was fat. Frederic Weis got dunked into oblivion. Stephen Marbury ate Vaseline. Jared Jeffries and Dontae Jones and Renaldo Balkman were among the many draft busts. Jerome James is here to represent the entirety of the James Dolan and Isiah Thomas era. Thomas signed James to a horrifying $30 million deal to play only 90 games in four years for the Knicks before being salary dumped. It was one of the worst contracts in NBA history and makes James the perfect placeholder for this disaster of a franchise.
Oklahoma City Thunder — Olden Polynice
The Seattle Super Sonics (remember them?) traded the fifth pick in the 1987 draft to move down a few slots and select center Olden Polynice. True to his name, Olden was Poly-Nice enough NBA player, a 15-year veteran that bounced around the league, but it’s the guy the Sonics missed out on that hurt. That’s because Seattle traded away the rights to Scottie Pippen, who might otherwise have played the 90s next to Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp. Can you imagine?
Orlando Magic — Fran Vazquez
The Magic have had plenty of busted draft picks this century, but perhaps none as big as Spanish big man Fran Vazquez. Orlando took Vazquez with the eleventh pick of the 2005 draft but couldn’t ever convince him to come stateside. Vazquez chose to stay in Europe and is the all time Spanish League leader in blocked shots, but that didn’t do the Magic much good.
Philadelphia 76ers — Andrew Bynum
In 2012 the 76ers traded away Andre Iguodala, Nikola Vucevic, Mo Harkless, and a first round pick in the blockbuster four team Dwight Howard trade, and they did it all to build around talented 25 year old All Star Andrew Bynum. In what would become a theme for prize Sixers acquisitions to come, Bynum struggled all year with injuries. While nursing knee injuries, Bynum infamously suffered a setback in a bowling alley and ended up missing the entire season before leaving Philadelphia in free agency. He never played a game for the franchise. But he might just be keeping a seat warm for Markelle Fultz these days.
Phoenix Suns — Dragan Bender
Bender is the youngest player on the list, just barely legal drinking age at 21. Could he really be the worst player in Suns history? Bender was the fourth pick of the 2016 draft and has been a complete washout in the NBA, his only positive contribution being so bad that he’s helped the Suns continue to lock in high draft picks. The Croatian Sensation is so bad Phoenix turned down the fourth year of his rookie contract in an unprecedented move. He’ll probably be back in Europe soon enough.
Portland Trail Blazers — Sam Bowie
With respect to mega busts Greg Oden and 1972 number one pick LaRue Martin, Sam Bowie will always be the player that makes Portland fans take a long drag on their cigarettes as they stare off wistfully into the distance. Bowie was a super talented big man out of Kentucky whom the Blazers drafted second overall, but he struggled with injuries his whole career with different-sized legs that were never quite right. It turns out Portland probably should have taken the guy the Chicago Bulls took with the next pick in the draft: Michael Jeffrey Jordan. Heck, Portland would probably have been happy with some of the other guys drafted that year too like Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton.
Sacramento Kings — Pervis Ellison
As bad as the Kings have been, they’ve only picked first in the draft once since 1960, and they used the pick on “Never Nervous” Pervis Ellison of Louisville in 1989. Ellison missed over half his rookie season with injuries and would be injury plagued throughout his career. The Kings dumped Ellison for two no name players and three picks after one year. They probably wish they’d gone with Shawn Kemp, Glen Rice, Tim Hardaway, Vlade Divac, Clifford Robinson, Mookie Blaylock, Sean Elliott, or any number of other options.
San Antonio Spurs — Alfredrick Hughes
Hughes was the fourteenth pick of the 1985 draft after an excellent career at Loyola Chicago. He played 12.7 minutes a game for one season before washing out of the league after one season with negative win shares to his name, but he’ll always have those years with Sister Jean and the Ramblers. You have no idea how hard it is to find a bad player in San Antonio’s storied history.
Toronto Raptors — Rafael Araujo
You could make a decent case for Andrea Bargnani, the Raptors’ only former number one pick who scored empty points and got dunked on repeatedly for many Toronto years. But Bargnani was eventually dealt for Marcus Camby and a draft pick that turned into Jakob Poeltl, and Poeltl later helped them get Kawhi Leonard, so we’ll forgive Bargnani. Instead we’ll go with their first round pick two years prior, Rafael Araujo, a 24 year old Brazilian big man out of BYU who scored a whopping 317 points for the Raptors and was off the team before Bargnani even arrived.
Utah Jazz — John Drew
The Utah Jazz had been in the NBA for less than a decade without ever having a winning record when all their luck was about to change in the 1982 draft. Utah had the third pick in the draft and decided to take a Human Highlight Reel out of the University of Georgia, Dominique Wilkins. Wilkins went on to have a superstar career, but the Jazz traded his rights to Atlanta for forward John Drew and bit player Freeman Williams. Drew was fine but started only 53 of 144 games he played for the Jazz before retiring three years later unceremoniously, but by the time he left, the Jazz had turned their franchise over to back-to-back first-round picks John Stockton and Karl Malone.
Washington Wizards — Kwame Brown
When Michael Jordan took over the Washington Wizards, fans were inclined to trust his every move, even when he rolled the dice on unproven high schooler Kwame Brown with the number one pick in the 2001 draft. Brown struggled to catch on in Washington and never found his way in the NBA, going down as one of the biggest draft busts in the history of the NBA. And you know he’s bad when he’s the Wizards’ worst player ahead of names like Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton with all their legal problems. Washington can only hope John Wall’s name doesn’t lead this section in five years with that bloated contract and growing injury list.
Check out the best player from each franchise, too. Who do you agree or disagree with? Comment below…
Originally published as a freelance opportunity for thesportsdrop.com.
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