Play On, Play On, Play On…
Some incredible NBA plays stand the test of time. Michael Jordan spectacularly switching hands in midair against the Lakers, Dr. J soaring for a gravity-defying reverse
layup, and Magic Johnson swishing a game-winning hook shot over the outstretched arm of Kevin McHale are just a few of the league’s most memorable moments. But what about the plays that we remember for the wrong reasons? Have you ever seen something so unbelievably bad, that you need to watch the replay three or four times before you can believe it actually happened? For me, the defining moment came in the mid-’90’s, when I watched Shawn Bradley brick a sky hook of the side of the backboard just a few feet away from my seat. I’m sure that every fan has their own version of the Bradley shot, and you’re more than welcome to share them in the comments. Let’s take a look at some of worst plays and funniest moments in NBA history.
Derek Harper: The Anti-Webber: Unfortunately, I can’t find any video evidence of this, but I distinctly remember seeing it on some old NBA show a few years back. During 1984 playoffs, Harper thought the Mavericks had the lead in the closing seconds, and dribbled out the clock…except that the score was tied and the game went into overtime. Dallas would go on to lose the game, and then the series in five games. I don’t think this can ever be topped in the pantheon of brainfarts, but if anyone can do it, it’s our next contestant…
Lamar Odom Has Lost a Few Braincells: This is one of the dumbest things you’ll ever see on a basketball court. Everyone has made a bad pass or missed an easy dunk, but I can’t remember a player forgetting to inbound the ball and just dribbling it inbounds like on the playground. And you’d figure, if anyone would be familiar with the rule, it would be Mr. Puff, Puff, Pass, right?
Shawn Marion Goes Both Ways: I’m surprised this doesn’t happen more often…or that Lamar Odom hasn’t done it (yet). After a jump-ball near the opponent’s basket, Marion grabs the ball, races down the court, and almost dunks in his own hoop! Talk about lack of concentration. Quick sidenote — what the hell is Shaq doing in this video? It’s a Suns/Rockets game, and yet there’s the big man in his Lakers jersey at the seven-second mark…can anyone explain this?
Zach Randolph Calls His Own Number: What more can I say about this video? I must’ve watched it at least 30 times, and it’s still mesmerizing. Randolph tries to dribble the ball between his legs, loses control and almost throws it out of bounds, and then somehow recovers, only to launch an off-balance airball at the shot clock buzzer. And his teammates aren’t even phased, because it’s just like Isiah drew it up. No, really…I’m pretty sure he called that play.
Marko Jaric’s Facts Are Backwards: Maybe this was Jaric’s way of paying homage to Kris Kross? I’ll bet they were huge in Serbia during the early ’90’s. Or maybe the whole backwards thing is a huge turn-on for hot Brazilian models. Hmm…mental note. Anyways, the best part isn’t even that Jaric has his jersey on the wrong way — it’s that Eddie Griffin (RIP) peeks under his own warm-ups just to make sure he didn’t make the same mistake. Priceless.
Qyntel Woods Shows Off at MSG: Missed dunks are a dime a dozen, but a botched 360 on a breakaway in front of thousands of New York fans? You just don’t see that every day…well, unless the Birdman is involved somehow, and if I had my way, he would be (I can never get enough of watching him fly!). Honorable mention goes to Julian Wright, and even he’s laughing right now. And somewhere, David Wesley is wishing he could dunk, just one time.
Shaquille O’Neal Misses a Free Throw! Shocking, I know, but have you ever seen an uglier airball? Not even Ben Wallace can top this one…actually, he came very close right there. Amazingly, Shaq doesn’t hold the NBA records for most consecutive foul shots missed (13) or most misses in a game (17 out of 18), both of which are held by everyone’s favorite Ivy League diabetic, Chris Dudley. Hack-a-Dud was all the rage in the early ’90’s.
Darrell Armstrong Can’t Dunk: Okay, so obviously he can, but what was he thinking during the 1996 NBA Slam Dunk Contest? After throwing down a powerful two-handed jam, Armstrong went up for his second dunk attempt…and for some unexplained reason, flipped in an ugly reverse layup. Kenny Smith called it the worst “dunk” of all-time, and will never let him live it down. And why should he? Save the layup contest for the WNBA, Darrell!
Dikembe Mutombo Wags Too Much:
I can’t find video, so you’ll have to trust me on this one. During a game against the Jordan-led Bulls in the mid-’90’s, Mutombo blocked a shot and then did his patented finger wag to the crowd. In the meantime, Steve Smith decided to save the ball from going out of bounds and blindly flipped it back underneath his own basket. The ball ended up going right to Scottie Pippen, who caught it and slammed a dunk over Mutombo, who was still standing with his back to the court in triumph. The shocked expression on his face alone was worth the price of admission.
Kobe Bryant’s Punch-Out: Believe it or not, I was actually looking for a clip of Kenny Anderson, the originator of the spectacular ‘punch-the-ball-and-have-it-bounce-back-in-your-face’ trick, but I guess this will have to do. And really, would I ever miss an opportunity to make fun of Kobe Bryant? At least he didn’t try to imitate His Airness and fall flat on his ass like the damn fool he is, yet again — oh, all right, just for old time’s sake, here you go:
UPDATE: How could I forget the infamous Ricky Davis play, when the greatest and most selfless Cavalier of all-time intentionally missed a shot at his own team’s basket to get his 10th rebound for a triple-double? I can’t decide what’s funnier — the fact that the NBA discredited the “rebound” in the stats or the look on Jerry Sloan’s face when he realizes what just happened. Are you still wondering why the Cavs traded you when LeBron came to town, Ricky?
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No diggity, no doubt..
[...] Some of the dumbest plays ever in the NBA. Quite a collection. Maybe they should finish school. [...]
[...] Checkt ihre Sammlung der miesesten NBA-Plays ever HIER. [...]
Not that it helps get the Derek Harper play on your site, but I’m pretty sure that clip is on a VHS tape called “NBA Awesome Endings”
A friend had that tape growing up and we used to watch it pretty much weekly, and that play is very familiar in my mind.
What do you know, he’s got an imdb page!
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0363845/
i’m surprised jordan missing an open dunk in the all-star game isn’t on here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_r4AGX3Qmo
[...] André Voigt listet auf seinem Blog 3meter5.de mit Hilfe der lowpost.com-Jungs die miesesten NBA-Plays all Time auf. Der absolute Verlierer in dieser Kategorie ist für [...]
[...] Missed layups happen here: These NBA plays will live in infamy. Yes, that means you can still laugh at them. [Low Posts] [...]
[...] Really fun post from Low Posts on classic NBA gaffes and goofs. I love seeing these super-human guys…: “Have you ever seen something so unbelievably bad, that you need to watch the replay three or four times before you can believe it actually happened? For me, the defining moment can in the mid-’90’s, when I watched Shawn Bradley brick a sky hook of the side of the backboard just a few feet away from my seat. I’m sure that every fan has their own version of the Bradley shot, and you’re more than welcome to share them in the comments. Let’s take a look at some of worst plays and funniest moments in NBA history.” [...]
@Timberhill: Yep, that’s the one. How is it not on YouTube??
@bearface: That deserves honorable mention just because it’s Jordan…still nowhere near as awful as Woods or Wright.
[...] are the worst plays in NBA history. There are a lot of good ones here. And by good, I mean bad. I can’t believe these guys get [...]
[...] www lowposts com Play On Play On Play On Posted by root 1 day 5 hours ago (http://lowposts.com) Races down the court and almost dunks in his own hoop comment february 5 2009 lustige anf ngerfehler von nba profis hoopsoul shawn bradley brick a sky hook of the side of the backboard just a few feet away from my seat powered by wordpress theme thebuckma Discuss | Bury | News | www lowposts com Play On Play On Play On [...]
[...] few months back, we took a look at some of the NBA’s worst and funniest plays, from Derek Harper dribbling out the clock in a tie game to Ricky Davis’ selfless attempt at [...]