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Injuries and sports have always gone together. Sometimes we see players fall, not by their own doing but due to some circumstances and their luck.
This year, the NBA started with some gruesome injuries. First, Gordon Hayward's career came to a heartbreaking halt after the Celtics forward fell awkwardly to the court on opening night, breaking his ankle in the process. Then, Brooklyn Nets guard Jeremy Lin sustained a ruptured patella tendon in the right knee against the Indiana Pacers.
This doesn't stop here, Houston Rockets newly signed CP3 injured his knee forcing him out for a month. And IT (Isaiah Thomas) and Kawhi Leonard are yet to play this season due to hip and quad injury respectively.
Injuries are a common occurrence in professional sports, but sometimes they can be so much frightful, horrid and dreadful that it can ruined players careers. Let us look at some top players whose careers were nearly ended by injuries.
Honorable Mentions:
a) Amar'e Stoudemire
Early in his career, Amar'e was an athletic and outstanding power forward. Amar'e and Steve Nash paired in Phoenix for one of the best teams to never win a title. In 2005, the Suns lost to Spurs in Western Conference Finals despite Amare averaging 37.0 PPG in the five games series.
Next season, Amare underwent surgery on his knees and missed out most of the season. Amare was poked in the right eye by teammate Boris Diaw and suffered partially torn iris. Because of back injuries and knee problems Amare lost his intimidating athleticism. it's really sad to the end of the career of someone such caliber. Stoudemire ended his career with New York Knicks on July 26, 2016.
b) Grant Hill
Grant Hill took the NBA career by storm winning rookie of the year. While playing for Pistons in 1996-97, Hill averaged 21.4PPG, 9.0RPG, and 7.3APG. He was named to the first team All-NBA for the first and only time in his career that season. After his move to Orlando next season, the Magic had high hopes of teaming Hill and Tracy McGrady but Hill went on to play only 47 games in a 4-year span because of chronic ankle issues. Hill finished his career as a solid defensive player with the Phoenix Suns and the LA Clippers but he had potential to be one of the greatest players of his generation.
#5 Brandon Roy
Roy was developing into one of the best players in the league, and one of the prominent shooting guards to carry the torch on from Kobe. Roy came out of college with knee injuries but made it through the early years of his career looking explosive and healthy, winning the Rookie of the Year in 2006-07.
Roy made three consecutive All-star games and was all-NBA for two years in a row before the 2010-11 season when he had arthroscopic surgery on both his knees. It caused him to miss most of the season. Roy was forced into retirement after just six season due to degenerative knee conditions. He appears to be done for good now, retiring during what should have been the prime years of his career.
#4 Bill Walton
Bill Walton was the No.1 pick in 1974, drafted by the Portland Trailblazers. Walton was a rebounding machine and a talented 7-footer. He would lead his team to a title in 1977 and also win the MVP that year. Unfortunately, the following season onwards he suffered many foot injuries.
All through the early 1980's, he was still dealing with his knee and foot issues. However, for one last time, he played sensational basketball and another title in 1986 with the Boston Celtics. Walton was elected to the Hall of Fame despite his short career. He could have been one of the most dominated players of his generation, but injury got the better of him.
#3 Tracy McGrady
After starting his career off with the Toronto Raptors, McGrady took a leap in his first season with the Orlando Magic in 2000. He averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game and quickly became one the league’s most dominant, talented players. Magic traded McGrady to the Houston Rockets in 2004 where he would go on to team up with a fellow injury-riddled superstar, Yao Ming.
In May 2008, McGrady underwent arthroscopic surgery on both his left shoulder and left knee and missed the rest of the season. The nagging knee issues led to McGrady spending the rest of his NBA career struggling in backup minutes with the Pistons, Knicks, Hawks, and Spurs. McGrady was a 7-time all-star, 2-time NBA scoring champion, and 7-time All-NBA selection.
A disappointing end to a career for a player who was genuinely considered the closest rival to Kobe during his peak.
#2 Yao Ming
Yao Ming was the No.1 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft. With his massive size and impressive skills he solidified himself as one of the best centers of the game.Yao fractured his left ankle in 2009 playoffs and played only 5 more games after that in his career.
Given his height, all 7-foot 6-inches of it, it was always going to be important to manage his knees and ankles. Eventually, it was not possible to return from the ankle injury in 2009 and Ming had to call it quits on his basketball career. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame last year along with Shaquille O'Neal and Allen Iverson.
Yao averaged 19.0 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 1.9 BPG per game in 486 league games. Yao was an 8-Time NBA all-star and one of the most loved players in NBA.
#1 Derrick Rose
Derrick Rose was the 1st overall pick in 2008 draft by his hometown Chicago Bulls. Rose was at his best from the first day of his NBA career. His athletism and skills were unmatched, which helped him to become the youngest MVP ever in 2011.
Rose tore his ACL his in game 1 against Philadephia in the 2012 Playoffs. He missed the entire 2012-13 season. After his return in next season, he again injured his meniscus, which forced him to miss the rest of that season. After that, he restarted his career with the New York Knicks in 2016-17 but he couldn't settle there as well. Hence, he is playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers this season on a veteran's minimum.
Guess the Lakers players!
