The NBA is a universe where players with the status of stars sometimes go unnoticed and it is not for less in a league so demanding where to shine you have to seek to be the best.
I will cite some cases of star players who did not have much recognition in the NBA, beginning with the list:
The case of the failed Drazen Petrovic can be considered special. An automobile accident deprived us of the best Petrovic, which could have become All-Star in a very short time. Although to tell you the truth, I'd already done enough credit by then. He made his NBA debut with the Blazers, where he didn't have much chance to shine. His transfer to the Nets was a blessing for the Croatian killer. In the two full seasons that Petrovic defended the New Jersey jersey he averaged over 20 points (20.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 1991-92 and 22.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 1992-93). And we talked about competitive Nets where we found league stars like Kenny Anderson and Derrick Coleman. Playing as a classic escort, unlike basketball in the old continent, where he held the base position, Petrovic had become one of the most dangerous marksmen in the league (44% in T3 in 1991-92 and 1992-93) and was knocking on the doors of glory.
Derek Harper was the starting point for the remembered Dallas Mavericks of the second half of the'80s who put the Lakers in serious trouble at the Western Conference. He also played a key role in those Pat Riley's Knicks who reached the 1994 finals to go down 4-3 to the Houston Rockets. Harper was once one of the most respected and reliable bases in the league. Great defender (included in the 2nd best defensive quintet of the league in the 1986-87 and 1989-90 seasons and 13th best thief in the history of the NBA with 1957 robberies accumulated throughout his career), great marksman from the long distance and very safe play director, despite his great poster in the league never managed to play an All-Star.
Byron Scott will always be remembered as a member of the starting Lakers showtime quintet. From his escort position, he was the team's outside shooting specialist, the player who received the balls bent at Magic and Worthy's penetrations to execute suspended throws from the middle and long distance. He was also a great player in transition, finishing in many occasions the so remembered counterattack launched and led by Magic Johnson. In 4 campaigns he surpassed an average of 20 points per game (3 in Lakers and another one in the Pacers), with the merit that comes with doing it in a team that is not only a winner, but a champion.
Rony Seikaly is currently known for his DJing facet, as well as for being the player signed to Barcelona and whose exit through the back door made possible the explosion as a player of Pau Gasol in the 2000-01 campaign. But before that, Seikaly was, during the first half of the'90s, one of the best pivots in the NBA. Defending the Miami Heat jersey, he averaged 5 consecutive campaigns (1989-94) double digits in points and rebounds, reaching his best figures in the 1993-94 season, with 17.1 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game. He was unlucky enough to coincide at the same time with beasts like Pat Ewing, Shaquille O'Neal or Alonzo Mourning, who closed the doors of the All-Star to him.
Younger fans will remember Ron Harper as that base-scorer, Phil Jackson's confidant, of the Bulls' last three rings (1996-98), to which they will add two more with the Lakers (2000 and 2001). That Harper was a veteran player, an old fox, who brought defence and versatility to the service of the team's stars. Before all this, Ron Harper was one of the league's best escorts, whose career was cut short at its sweetest by a serious injury in 1990.
Rod Strickland The historical numbers of this base are spectacular: 7,987 assists distributed (9th in NBA history) and 1,516 robberies (20th in NBA history) in 17 league campaigns. He was the third best assistant in the league in the 1990s after John Stockton and Mark Jackson. He was included in the 2nd best five in the NBA in the 1997-98 season after averaging 17.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 10.5 assists per game, in which he was also the best assistant in the league. However, none of this helped him to be called to participate in an All-Star throughout his long career in which he would end up signing total averages of 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 7.3 assists.
All these players were once stars but in the demanding and competitive world of the NBA they were greatly underestimated as many had All-Star numbers.
I remember very outstanding performances in league by several of these players and they were really dominant in their respective positions, of course a league as I have already mentioned where only the best stand out is difficult to highlight and is more likely to fall into oblivion.
Fortunately there are the numbers and somehow we can analyze them and see certain injustices in the best basketball in the world.
Source:
https://www.solobasket.com/nba/estrellas-sin-reconocimiento-los-mejores-jugadores-nba-que-nunca-fueron-all-star
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