OT: The Curse of Darius Miles Continues

No, this has nothing to do with the salary cap. medical retirement or emails threatening to sue.

I'm taking about actual team performance.

Since Darius Miles made his debut in the last 1:46 of their 20-point blow-out win over Dallas, the Grizzlies have lost 4 straight, by 7, 11 and 21 to three sub-0.500 teams and tonight's 15-point loss to the Cavs.

You may say that the Grizz just aren't that good (and you'd be right) and it has nothing to do with Darius Miles. But also consider this: Darius is now playing in his 7th season, for his fourth team, and no team he has played for has finished the season above 0.500. This trend looks to continue for the near future in Memphis.

So, just out of curiosity, what other top 3 draft picks have spent their entire careers toiling in comparable futility? Please don't bother mention players that have been in the league less than five seasons - their time will come (perhaps), and players like Jay Williams whose career ended after a single season due to a non-basketball injury.

Even Darko, Kwame and Kandiman all managed to play on winning teams at some point.

The player who immediately comes to mind is Shareef Abdur-Rahim, who ironically also has ties to The Blazers and Grizzlies and was a teammate of Miles in Portland. He was originally drafted 3rd by the Grizzlies (then in Vancouver) and spent five seasons there playing for teams that never won more than 23 games. He then spent two and a half losing seasons in Atlanta before being traded to a Portland team that had recently acquired Darius Miles. That team finished 41-41 that year and went downhill from there. SAR finally hit pay dirt in his 10th season when Sacramento went 44-38 and made the play-offs. So, perhaps there's hope for Miles yet.

So, can you name any other former top three picks who have been in the league a comparable amount of time to Miles that have never played on a team that finished the season above 0.500?

BNM

 

Miles hasn't actually PLAYED for 7 seasons.

 

This is the 7th season he's played in the NBA. In his first six seasons (2000-01 through 2005-06) he played in 81, 82, 67, 79, 63 and 40 games. He then missed two complete seasons, and is now playing in his 7th NBA season.

BNM

 

http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/milesda01.html

This is his eighth...

 

No it's not. Go back in re-count. I think you must have counted 2003-04 twice (he played for both Cleveland and Portland).

Geez, is this really that hard? First Speed and now you. Guys, Miles is now PLAYING in his 7th NBA season.

So how about some examples of top three picks that have played a comparable amount of time and never played on a team that finished the season above 0.500?

BNM

 

This sounds like a question for Elias stats.

I have a suspicion that it's happened more than a couple of times (a top 3 pick not playing for a winner in his first 7 years) but I'm too tired and lazy to try to suss it out.

 

I thought Stromile Swift, yet another Grizzly alumnus, might be another, but he was with Memphis the year they won 45 games and is now playing for a Nets team that's 19-19 and has a chance to finish above 0.500.

BNM

 

Yeah, you'd think it would almost be a given. Teams that have top three picks are usually pretty horrible (that's why they have top three picks). But, even terrible franchises like the Clippers occasionally make the play-offs, and players leave for free agency and/or get traded. You would think with all those losing seasons and high draft picks the Clippers or Hawks would have somebody, besides Miles, who qualifies.

BNM

 

Emeka Okafor? But it hasn't been long...and I don't actually recall what position he was drafted, just know it was top 5, although I'm sure he was number 2 or 3.

I guess we now track Kevin Durant's career?

 

Shareef Abdur-Rahim says hi.

 

LaRue Martin popped to mind, but a quick check verifies he only played four seasons. In fact, had he remained on the Blazers one more season, he'd have been a champion...so to speak.

 

Okay. Got it.

 

Technically, as mentioned above, Shareef Abdur-Rahim went nine seasons at the start of his career without playing for a team that finished above 0.500. He finally "broke the curse" in his 10th season.

I've gone back to 1970, and the only other top 3 picks I found that have played seven, or more seasons, at the start of their career, without playing on a team that finished the season with a winning record are:

Shawn Bradley - drafted No. 2 in 1993. Bradley struggled on losing teams his first seven seasons (Philadelphia, New Jersey and Dallas) before averaging 7.1 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 2.8 BPG on a Dallas team that won 53 games in his 8th season.

Pervis Ellison - drafted No. 1 in 1989 managed to play ten consecutive seasons for losing teams. He almost made it his entire career without ever playing for a winner, but the basketball gods showed mercy, and he concluded his 11-year NBA career appearing in nine games for a Seattle team that finished 44-38. But, it was not a total reprieve. Seattle had a losing record (4 - 5) in the nine games Ellison played for them that season.

Waymon Tisdale - drafted No. 2 in 1985 (first year of the draft lottery). His career was similar to Shareef Abdur-Rahim's. He was a pretty solid player on bad teams for his first nine seasons until finally hooking up with a Phoenix Suns team that won 59 games in his 10th season.

I don't think I missed anyone. From the looks of things, unless he hooks up with a winner in the next couple seasons, Darius Miles could end up being the only player drafted top 3 since 1970 (perhaps ever) to play at least seven seasons in the NBA and never play on a team that finished the season above 0.500.

Of course, back in the 1970s, if a player didn't produce in his first four or five seasons (LaRue Martin) he was out of the league. Back then, most players went to college for four years and were already in their mid-20s by their 4th season in the league. Given the older age when starting their careers, top draft picks were expected to contribute immediately. There was much more focus on production and nobody used the term "upside". You were either good, or you weren't. If you weren't, you were out of the league.

BNM

 

As mentioned above, there have been multiple top 3 picks, especially back in the pre-lottery days, that only lasted 4 or 5 years in the league and never played on a winning team. Stipanovich is one example, LaRue Marin is another.

See above...

But, he was a key member of that 47-win team that made the play-offs and advanced to the 2nd round.

Yes, but technically he did play on a team that finished the season above 0.500 (although they were 19-20 in the 39 games Dunleavy played for them).

BNM

 

Memphis deserves what it's getting, which is a bunch of losing if they think Miles will help them in the long term. They can get their small chunk of the luxury tax money from us since no one shows up to their games because no one could care less.

 

BTW, I was surprised that going all the way back to 1970, I could not find a top three pick that played in seven, or more season and never played on a team that finished the season above 0.500. Pervis Ellison came closest, but managed to play nine early season games for the 44-38 Sonics in his 11th and final NBA season.

If I get time, I'll have to go back and check prior to 1970. However, many of those drafts are top heavy with Hall of Famers, and guys who weren't any good were usually out of the league in 4 or 5 years. So, I don't know if I'll find anyone.

BNM

 

Okafor was a No. 2 pick and is currently in his 5th season with Charlotte - all losing. And, he re-signed with the Bobcats, so there is a good chance he will make it through his 7th season, and perhaps beyond, without playing for a winning team.

Although, I suspect, barring injury, that at some point later in his career he'll get picked up by a winning team. He's a serviceable big man, and those are always in short supply. If he plays long enough (see: Pervis Ellison, Wayman Tisdale and Shareef Abdir-Rahim), he'll probably eventually latch onto a winning team at some point.

BNM