The moment when a player lost his chance to become the GOAT

[rule1223]

List the defining moment in a greatest player of all time's career when he lost the chance to become the greatest of all time, heres what i think for the following players

Kobe- when he lost in 08 against the celtics
Lebron- when the heat lost to the mavs in '11, still possible if still dominates the next few years
Wade- when lebron joined his team and won mvp
Durant- still young, if he can dominate the next decade, he could be up for consideration

[buddha]

Magic - when he had gay sex

[Akrazotile]

Magic - when he had gay sex

Isiah - same thing.

[fpliii]

The correct answer for Wade is when he had his meniscus removed instead of repaired in college. I think DRose and WB both made the right call in keeping theirs; CP3 had his removed I believe.

Not that any of them had GOAT potential, but knee injuries suck.

[r15mohd]

List the defining moment in a greatest player of all time's career when he lost the chance to become the greatest of all time, heres what i think for the following players

Kobe- when he lost in 08 against the celtics
Lebron- when the heat lost to the mavs in '11, still possible if still dominates the next few years
Wade- when lebron joined his team and won mvp
Durant- still young, if he can dominate the next decade, he could be up for consideration

i'd say when he didn't make the playoff's that one year, and then lost in the 1st round the year after...GOAT players find a way out of the 1st round, for the very least, missing the playoffs is a complete EXIT for being within the discussion

[SamuraiSWISH]

Kobe: 2008 Finals
Solidified: 2011 WCSF

LeBron: 2010 Decision
Solidified: 2011 NBA Finals

[AnaheimLakers24]

The correct answer for Wade is when he had his meniscus removed instead of repaired in college. I think DRose and WB both made the right call in keeping theirs; CP3 had his removed I believe.

Not that any of them had GOAT potential, but knee injuries suck.

poor baby wade. only player in history to ever get injured. the wittle bwaby

[fpliii]

poor baby wade. only player in history to ever get injured. the wittle bwaby

lol

Dumb decision to have it removed though. I think with CP3 it was impossible to repair it, but I'm not sure if it was an option with Wade.

[Im so nba'd out]

kobe when he averaged 15 ppg in the 2000 finals and shaq averaged 40

[jstern]

This is something that has crossed my mind and to me a player loses their chance early in their career. You need a Jordan like level of play starting from your rookie year, going on to dominate the league.

We're talking about number 1 all time here, not just top ten all time.

And then in the Jordan comparison, the number one thing that really sticks out to me about Jordan is his mind. It's a certain mentality that you're born with. Just an intense focus, concentration, and obsession. That's really what makes Jordan the GOAT.

Out of anyone playing Lebron comes the closes to being a top 3. Just an amazing talent. Great mind, IQ, the one thing that Jordan has over him is that mind, because nobody else in any sports has it, and some of you might take that as a knock against Lebron. But to me a Lebron could be up to number 2 all time.

I really don't factor rings in all this, but talent and in game domination.

Edit: Larry bird seems to have an amazing mind, will.

[GODbe]

Although Jordan doesn't belong in the discussion for GOAT status..

Jordan - When young Kobe entered the league and manhandled him to retirement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEQ1j4O9860

[Rocketswin2013]

The correct answer for Wade is when he had his meniscus removed instead of repaired in college. I think DRose and WB both made the right call in keeping theirs; CP3 had his removed I believe.

Not that any of them had GOAT potential, but knee injuries suck.

CP3 had GOAT PG potential.

[TheMarkMadsen]

Kobe losing to a stacked team when he had 0 all stars on his and Vlad Rasmonovic/Luke Walton were getting major minutes was a legacy killer

[Mass Debator]

Kobe - If he would've won in 2008 or 2011, that would've been a huge legacy boost. I think his chance at GOAT ended last year. 7 rings was his only hope at being in the GOAT conversation, but that would still be questionable. I believe he patterned his game too similarly to Jordan which gave him almost no shot at GOAT. He just wasn't as efficient.

Lebron - I don't think 2011 diminished his career all that much. Now that he's captured a ring (2), he's gotta continue riding the high wave. Losing this year would be a huge blow to his career imo. If he can 4peat however, I think he'd be right there with MJ. 5 seals it for me. I personally think he'll be the 2nd best player of all time when it's all said and done.

Wade - Never had a good chance. The roster he had to work with was only for a small window. If he could've stayed healthy in 2005-2007 and won 3 rings, and for this Lebron thing to still happen, he would've had 5 rings going on 6 this year. I think he wins 1 MVP (2007) so his resume would look similar to Kobes, but he'd be viewed as the better player. Probably be right with Lebron in the rankings. Oh well, he never stayed healthy.

[KyleKong]

Kobe losing to a stacked team when he had 0 all stars on his and Vlad Rasmonovic/Luke Walton were getting major minutes was a legacy killer

And what his excuse for this?