Ten NBA Stars Whose Careers Were Hampered By Chronic Injuries

These ten NBA stars saw their careers shortened by injuries.

News of a season-ending blood clot for San Antonio Spurs young superstar Victor Wembanyama broke on Thursday. That brought up terrible memories of these ten former stars whose careers were cut short by injuries. Let’s hope that Wemby doesn’t join this list in the future.

Penny Hardaway

Penny Hardaway was arguably the best young guard in the league in the mid-1990s. The four-time All-Star looked to be a perennial All-Pro player, but his career was significantly impacted by multiple knee injuries, sapping his athleticism. He played 14 seasons in the NBA, but his career could’ve been so much better.

Bill Walton

This could be the all-time “what-if”.Walton was the NBA MVP in 1978 after winning a title in 1977. He was arguably the greatest college basketball player of all-time, and looked to be on pace to be one of the very best players in league histores. But, repeated injuries to his foot and ankle significantly diminished him. He did play a huge role on one of the greatest teams of all-time, winning Sixth Man of the Year with the 1986 Celtics in what ended up being somewhat of a swan song. Had he stayed healthy, he would be mentioned alongside the very best players in history.

Grant Hill

After starring at Duke, Hill entered the NBA with Hall of Fame expectations, and looked to be living up to them early in his career. But, after Orlando signed him to a huge deal in a sign-and-trade in 2000, he missed nearly all of the next three seasons with ankle injuries. Hill played until 2013, but never reached the heights he did pre-injury.

Derrick Rose

The 2011 NBA MVP was a sensational point guard that brought winning basketball back to Chicago for the first time since the Michael Jordan era. But, he tore his ACL in the first game of the 2012 NBA Playoffs, and was never the same player. He was on track to be an all-time great, but injuries completely robbed him of his all-world explosiveness.

Brandon Roy

The Trail Blazers have three players on this list. They’ve certainly got an argument for being the most cursed team in the league. Roy was a three-time All-star who had made back-to-back All-NBA teams in 2009 and 2010 before a degenerative knee condition essentially ended his time as an elite player. he tried to stick around once the condition set in, but it didn’t last.

Yao Ming

I think a lot of people remember Yao Ming being really big. But, he was a downright incredible player, a center with skill ahead of his time, and an incredible shooting touch. The five-time All-NBA selection was forced to retire due to foot and ankle injures at 30 in 2011.

Ralph Sampson

Ralph Sampson, like Bill Walton, is mentioned among the very best college basketball players of all-time. He started his NBA career as the Rookie of the Year, and made four-straight All-Star teams from 1984-1987. But, like so many big men, his knees broke down, and he never reached the all-time great status he could’ve.

Tracy McGrady

Tracy McGrady had a sensational career.The seven-time All-NBA selection is an all-timer, without a doubt. But, one of the most gifted pure scorers in league history could’ve had an even better career had he not been hit with knee and back injuries in the late 2000s andn early 2010s.

Joel Embiid

Yes, his career isn’t over yet. But, it’s clear at this point that Embiid’s injury issues are going to hamper his legacy. the 2023 NBA MVP has been as dominant as all but a few players in NBA history when he’s on the court. But, that’s been less than half of total games since he was drafted into the league in 2015. There’s nothing he can’t do on the court, except stay healthy.

Greg Oden

Ok, so he was never a star in the NBA. But, he absolutely was going to be, having dominated every level of basketball prior, had he not had some of the worst knees in league history. Repeated knee injuries and complications led the 2007 number-one overall pick and generational big man prospect to just 105 career games. Oh, what could’ve been.