It seems like everyone likes to talk about who were the greatest players in NBA history to not win a championship. I find that to be such a pessimistic endeavor. So, being the ‘glass is half full’ kinda guy that I am, I decided to do a list of the five worst players in the NBA since 1980 to win a championship. They had to have played in the league for at least five years. Why five years? Because many, many players have been able to put up one, two or three bad years then were gone. Just as when you decide who were the greatest to never win a championship, longevity of career is definitely a key factor. There were many other factors taken into consideration, but much like the BCS, I will not bore you with the details.
1) Chuck Nevitt, 7-5, 1985 Los Angeles Lakers
9 seasons, 1.6 points and 1.5 rebounds.
1985 playoff averages of 1.4 points and 0.9 rebounds.
It’s the regular season averages of 1.6 points and 1.5 rebounds for nine years that catapult Chuck to the number one spot. Plus, for those of us who can remember Nevitt during his playing days he sure was fun to watch, you actually stay tuned for the full 48 minutes hoping Chuck would make an appearance. He was Shawn Bradley without the skills, it hurts me just to type that.
2) Earl Cureton, 6-9, 1983 Philadelphia 76ers & 1994 Houston Rockets
12 seasons, 5.4 points and 4.7 rebounds.
1983 playoff averages of 0.4 points and 1.0 rebounds.
1994 playoff averages of 1.8 points and 2.9 rebounds.
Earl lands at the number two spot not just because he won two championships, but also because for three of those years between championships, 1990, 1992 and 1993, Cureton was not in the NBA. Besides, anybody who goes by the nickname of ‘The Twirl’ deserves a little slack.
3) TIE – Right Place At the Right Time – Between Will Perdue and Kurt Rambis, both of who won four NBA championships.
Will Perdue, 7-0, 1991, 1992 & 1993 Chicago Bulls, 1999 San Antonio Spurs
13 seasons, 4.7 points and 4.9 rebounds.
1991 playoff averages 4.1 points and 3.8 rebounds.
1992 playoff averages 2.5 points and 2.2 rebounds.
1993 playoff averages 1.9 points and 2.3 rebounds.
1999 playoff averages 1.1 points and 2.3 rebounds.
Perdue played 13 seasons, which when you look back at all the abuse he took in the media and by teammates is pretty amazing. The first three championships were a gift from Michael Jordan, but give Will credit for hanging in there for championship number four with the Spurs.
Kurt Rambis, 6-8. 1982, 1985, 1987 & 1988 Los Angeles Lakers
14 seasons, 5.2 points and 5.6 rebounds.
1982 playoff averages of 5.9 points and 6.1 rebounds.
1985 playoff averages of 6.1 points and 6.8 rebounds.
1987 playoff averages of 4.6 points and 3.9 rebounds.
1988 playoff averages of 2.7 points and 2.7 rebounds.
Rambis is here for one reason, the dark rimmed glasses. He stuck out like a sore thumb whenever Showtime took the floor. If you were uncoordinated, slow, short, fat, skinny, not good at sports, Kurt was your hero. There he was, dark-rimmed glasses with the safety strap around the back on the same court with the cool guys, Magic, Kareem, Worthy, Scott, and they loved him for doing the dirty work. Kurt, you go unrecognized no longer, you make my top five list. Most importantly, he didn’t embarrass himself by trying to dance at any of the four championship rallies he attended. Which brings me to number five.
5) Mark Madsen, 6-9, 2001 & 2002 Los Angeles Lakers
6 seasons, 2.5 points and 2.8 rebounds.
2001 playoff averages 0.4 points and 0.8 rebounds.
2002 playoff averages 0.0 points and 0.3 rebounds.
Everything Kurt Rambis worked 14 seasons to create all came crashing down in five mindless seconds of, dare I say, dancing. Granted, Madsen definitely has a case to make the list based solely on his regular season and playoff averages, but it was his public display of fancy footwork that locked up spot number five. I didn’t think it was possible for anyone to make my dad look like a good dancer.
This is just my list, there are many deserving players who barely missed the cut, but I’ll leave that for future experts to debate.
