There have been major injured players, wrong draft picks, and unexpected starts that have occurred within the last 10-15 years in the NBA. A large amount of these unexpected stars used their haters and the teams that passed on them as motivation to continue to grow. Some of these mistakes have even caused franchises and careers to fall apart or set back for years. Here are the top five biggest questionable choices in the NBA.
Derrick Rose
GiphyDerrick Rose was (in my opinion still is) an absolute superstar in the NBA. Coming into his first three seasons in the league, after being selected number one overall, Derrick played 240 out of his 246 games in those seasons. In his 2011 season, he was voted as an all-star reserve representing the Eastern Conference and made NBA history becoming the youngest MVP. However, after suffering several injuries since then, there's a big question mark on his career after missing seasons with injury. Now he's on the Timberwolves where he's a great player off the bench and even scored a career-high 50 points!
The James Harden trade
This one is one of the biggest trade mistakes in NBA history! Winner of the 2012 6th Man of the Year Award, James Harden showed signs of up and coming stardom on the OKC Thunder. His offense was improving, and he was learning more and more every year. However, the Thunder couldn't see it and traded him. Now James Harden has been MVP candidate for years now and incredibly averaged 36 points per games this season. He was in his bag this season and even dropped an amazing 32 straight 30-point games. Thunder fans are now really salty as now surprisingly Kevin Durant has also left the team and the franchise has been trying to recover ever since. This James Harden trade started the chain of unfortunate events for the Thunder team.
Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant
Chris Paul is regarded as an elite level point guard whose passing, court vision, ball handling, and leadership skills are deadly. He can also knock down the midrange shot any time he wants. At the time Kobe Bryant was in his prime and needed an elite ball handler that could help him control the pace of the game, Chris Paul was that guy. However, the trade was during an NBA lockout and was ultimately vetoed because it "was not fair compensation." This veto put a really bad reputation on the former commissioner, David Stern, who was accused of trying to abuse his power of the league. This also severed the ties of Chris Paul and the New Orleans franchise as he was traded to the Clippers.
Carmelo Anthony
GiphyThe Detroit Pistons have had a history of making some questionable draft picks: Austin Daye (15th pick), Brandon Knight (8th pick), and Rodney White (9th pick). However, the worst pick has to the Darko Milicic, who was the second overall pick for the Pistons. In his defense, he was actually regarded as a solid draft pick, and the Pistons desperately needed a skilled big man at the time. However, they picked him over NBA superstars Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and Carmelo Anthony. Carmelo Anthony could've easily have gone to the Pistons as he was the third overall pick, sparking an upset that leaves Pistons fans cringing at their team's draft day decision.
Stephen Curry
Stephen Curry is regarded as a man who changed the game of basketball. He mastered the art of the 3-point shot and even showed it off on college basketball's biggest stage: March Madness. Curry shot 3 after 3 and would earn high status coming into the draft, even getting a special guest at one of his games, one of the best basketball players of all time: LeBron James. However, the Minnesota Timberwolves missed out on this generational player, picking Johnny Flynn, who didn't amount to anything in the NBA.
As you can see, anything can happen in the game of basketball, and there are surprises and stars emerging every year the league goes on.
