25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1993 & 1994

Since I wasn't able to update yesterday I'll be doing a double update today. Let's first take a look at the craptastic pics of 1993.

1993
NFL

Photo courtesy of fanbase.com

#24 - Philadelphia Eagles - Leonard Renfro - Defensive Tackle - Colorado

This was a close one and I went back and forth on whether to pick Renfro or the Raiders selection of defensive back Patrick Bates, who was often trouble and only tallied one interception in his career. Ultimately, the nod went to Renfro for a variety of reasons. Renfro did nothing of note in 2 seasons with a Philadelphia team looking to rejuvenate their defense and selected 2 picks after Renfro was Pro Bowler and long time NFL player Dana Stubblefield. Renfro would play one year with the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL in 1996 before never being heard from again. If the Eagles had selected Stubblefield their defense would be much improved but they went with Renfro instead and get the nod for worst NFL first round pick of 1993.

NBA

Photo courtesy of basketballcards.nl

 #26 - Orlando Magic - Geert Hammink - Center - LSU
As a Magic fan I think I had to make this selection. Hammink played in 3 NBA seasons and played in only 8 games. This was due to the unnatural obsession with 7-footers in the NBA during the mid 90's. Hammink had a total of 14 points in his career, added 7 rebounds and 2 assists. The guy stayed in the league 2 seasons too long. The only thing of note Geerty ever did was have a small role in the Shaq/Nick Nolte movie "Blue Chips". He wasn't a trouble maker, he did have 9 kids to 8 different women, he wasn't a distraction to the team but for his crappy play on the court, undeserved 3 year career, 14 points + 7 rebounds for his career and that stupid haircut he is our worst NBA first round pick of 1993.

1994
Our double update for the day brings us to 1994. Some solid players selected like Marshall Faulk and Jason kid but we aren't here to look at that, we are here to look at the crap.

NFL

Photo courtesy of bleacherreport.net

#14 - Philadelphia Eagles - Bernard Williams - Tackle - Georgia
This wasn't a story of the Eagles taking a guy that just wasn't talented enough to play in the NFL. Williams started all 16 games for the Eagles his rookie year, but the kid couldn't stay away from drugs long enough to pass a drug test. It is alleged that Williams failed 15 drug tests...15! This resulted in the talented Williams being banned from the NFL. Williams would play for the CFL and Vince McMahon's XFL spectacle but he would never be sniffed by an NFL team ever again. The Eagles swept the picks for 1993 and 1994 so it's easy to see why they struggled to the point they got a crappy enough pick to select McNabb  in a few years. There was a few others that deserved this pick but once I read about Bernard Williams I knew that nobody else would be as "deserving" as Mr. Williams for this award. Way to throw away a promising career Mr. Williams. Why some players can't give up drugs; allegedly marijuana in Williams case? You can't give up pot for millions? And they say it's not addicting. The Eagles could of had solid tackles Wayne Gandy or Todd Steussie, still on the board when Williams was selected.

NBA

Photo courtesy of thenolookpass.com

#20 - Philadelphia 76ers - BJ Tyler - Point Guard - Texas
Yinka Dare was almost selected for this spot due to his ability to turn the ball over without ever getting assists but due to a story that may or may not be true about Tyler he gets this spot. Played in 55 games his rookie year averaging 3.5 ppg and 3.2 apg. However, according to Chris Young's book Drive, Tyler lost all his famed speed by falling asleep with an ice pack on his knee severely damaging it. This forced him into retirement and cost him a chance at a solid career. Not a good couple of years for Philadelphia teams. Tyler was selected by the expansion Raptors but did not play for them. And for this "The Iceman" BJ Tyler is our worst NBA first round pick of 1994.

I should be back tomorrow with an update, if not I'll double up on Tuesday. Till then take care.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1992

It's late...let's get to talking about 1992 without any clever bullshit.

1992
NFL

Photo courtesy of ioffer.com

#19 - Atlanta Falcons - Tony Smith - Running Back - Southern Miss
You all thought you escaped a bust being named that's connected to Brett Favre. As Lee Corso says, "Not so fast my friend." There are many deserving players from this draft; the 49ers pick of Ronnie Lott's second coming Dana Hall who had no career picks, the Giants pick of one touchdown tight end Derek Brown, the Saints pick of Vaughn Dunbar and the Bengals selection of Houston's David Klingler. However, the number one spot goes to running back Tony Smith. Not only was the pick acquired in trade for Brett Favre but Smith didn't do much. He only got to run the ball in his rookie year average  3.8 yards on 87 careers for a total of 329 yards, he added 2 touchdowns. Smith was a kick returner for the Falcons for three seasons before finding his way out of the league never to return...they could of just kept Brett Favre and been better off than taking a running back in the underwhelming class of 1992.

NBA

Photo courtesy of portlandtrailblazersfansite.com

 #26 - Portland Trail Blazers - Dave Johnson- Small Forward - Syracuse
The 1992 Draft was solid for basketball. You had Shaq and Zo, Sprewell, solid white guys Laettner and Gugliotta. You get my point a very solid draft. However, the pick of Dave Johnson was not very solid. Johnson only lasted one season in Portland before moving to a 17 game stint with Chicago in 1993. For his career Johnson averaged 3.5 points, 0.3 assists and 1.1 rebounds a game. Johnson isn't a tragic tale, just a guy that got to the NBA and wasn't very good, but he made it a lot further than a lot of young kids dreaming of NBA stardom get.

Tomorrow is 1993, we are getting a lot closer to some expansion teams. Yay! Write to me and let me know your busts, favorite teams biggest bust or if you think I write like crap.
See ya tomorrow.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1991

The 1991 Drafts were not drafts that would change the balance of power in the NFL or NBA for the most part. The best player selected out of both drafts was probably Larry Johnson, who was selected by the Charlotte Hornets. Now that we know the best, lets take a look at the worst.

NFL

Photo courtesy of daylife.com

#15 - Pittsburgh Steelers - Huey Richardson - Defensive End - Florida
A shock pick right? The easy pick would be Todd Marinovich or Dan McGwire. QBs who flamed out rather fast who were selected when Brett Favre was still on the board. Granted, Favre has had his fair share of ups and downs but the guy has a ring and is the career leader in so many passing categories it is ridiculous.  However, I went with Huey Richardson because as legend has it the Steelers had three players on their board; Alvin Harper, Mike Pritchard and Leonard Russell, with 3 other teams selecting before them. Wouldn't you know that all three were selected and then the Steelers were up. So Pittsburgh's front office scrambled to find someone they were comfortable picking before finally settling on Richardson. Richardson spent one season with Pittsburgh and recorded no stats. Chuck Noll then retired as Pittsburgh's head coach. "The Chin" Bill Cowher took over and one of his first acts of duty was to find out if he had to keep the former first round pick. The front office said no and Richardson was shipped to Washington before the 1992 season for a 7th round pick. He did last long there and was cut, only to be signed by the Jets in midseason. He finished out the season and would never be heard of on the gridiron again. This is a horrible pick because Huey did nothing of note but also because the Steelers clearly only ranked their top 14 picks in the first round which is ubsurded when they were picking 15th. A rare Steelers miss is our worst NFL pick of 1991.

NBA

Photo courtesy of hoopedia.nba.com

#25- Golden State Warriors - Shaun Vandiver - Colorado
The Rockets selection of John Turner would have qualified for this pick as Turner only played one NBA season before floating into obscurity  but Vandiver won this in a landslide. Vandiver had a successful career...in Europe. It seems that Vandiver never played a single NBA game, ala a wasted pick. And nothing is worse than a wasted pick. Vandiver recently has been taking various college coaching jobs. The draft was week and there isn't much outside of Bobby Phills still on the board at the time of this pick that would have made a big impact. However, getting nothing from a pick is the worst thing you can do and therefore Shaun Vandiver is the worst NBA pick of 1991.

Tomorrow we cover 1992. The NFL Draft of this year had many misses, while the NBA Draft had a lot of productive players throughout the draft. See ya tomorrow.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1990

Finally to a new decade, the 1990s. In the 90's with more coverage being devoted towards the Draft busts became more prevalent and then everyone who wants an All-Star became labeled a bust in my opinion. Today marks the first time we had a tie. Let's begin.

1990
NFL

Photo courtesy of nydailynews.com

#7 - Detroit Lions - Andre Ware - Quarterback - Houston
The 1990 Draft is filled with potential candidates for this spot, I could have went with 4 or 5 different choices but settled on two for my own reasons. Certainly a shout out is warranted for the #4 overall pick Keith McCants who Tampa selected and has been in and out of trouble since he was drafted. Ultimately, a position switch and decent tenure in the league kept McCants off this list. McCants' loss was Andre Ware's gain. Ware was selected to this list for a few reasons. When selected the Lions thought they had the makings of a great offense. Former Heisman winners Ware and Barry Sanders would lead their team to dominance.  One problem; Lions coach Wayne Fontes didn't want to play Ware. He'd play Rodney Peete or Erik Kramer but would only turn to Ware when the team was out of the playoff hunt. His clear refusal to develop Ware may have been the downside to Ware's career but it's not like the Houston Cougar did much to inspire faith in him when he did play. Ware would only start 6 NFL games and finish his career with 5 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. He tried to make Jacksonville's expansion roster in 1995 but was cut before the regular season never to be heard from in the NFL again. Ware, along with the help of David Klingler, have set back Houston QBs for generations. Graham Harrell couldn't even get drafted a year ago and had trouble finding a camp invite; they brought about the stigma that Houston QBs (because of their run and shoot offense) simply can't hack it in the NFL. Whether that is fair or not, Ware sure did his part by being a flop of a first round pick. Granted the Lions really didn't have much other options at QB, Neil O'Donnell was probably the best of the lot and he wasn't selected till the  3rd Round, so that saved Ware from sharing this spot alone. Ware now works College Football games for the ABC/ESPN family of networks.

Photo courtesy of spartanstars.home.comcast.net

#13 - Kansas City Chiefs - Percy Snow - Linebacker - Michigan State
Percy Snow was a talented player his rookie year and showed flashes for the Chiefs. I often heard his named mentioned his rookie year and my brother would get excited anytime he got a Snow rookie card in a pack of football cards. After his first campaign, which saw him record 2 sacks and an interception, Snow was being counted on to contribute heavily to Marty Schottenheimer's defense. Snow would no doubt produce with pressure being taken off of him by the monster play of Derrick Thomas. Unfortunately, Snow (the older brother of NBA player Eric Snow) got injured in a moped accident and the injuries forced him out the rest of the year. Snow was never the same, he would play one more season with the Chiefs and one with the Chicago Bears before hanging up his cleats. Another promising career ended by a reckless decision. Instead of Snow the Chiefs could have selected Renaldo Turnbull, Lamar Lathon or Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith. 


NBA

Photo courtesy of sportige.com

#8- Los Angeles Clippers - Bo Kimble - Guard - Loyola Marymount
There was a lot of hype surrounding Kimble. He along with fellow USC recruit Hank Gathers transferred to Loyola Marymount from USC and turned Loyola into a high flying, fast scoring team under Coach Paul Westhead. Unfortunately, before they could challenge for an NCAA Championship, Gathers collapsed during a  WCC tournament game and died. Gathers was arguably the more talented of the two and left a huge hole in his teammates hearts and the team's lineup. Kimble would go on to lead the team to the Elite Eight, losing to eventual winner UNLV.  The right-handed Kimble shot his first free throw of every game left-handed in honor of the left-handed Gathers. Due to his performance Kimble was selected 8th overall by the Clippers but wouldn't display the magic that he had when he won over the nation during Loyola's improbable run. In 3 seasons Kimble only scored 574 points and tallied 198 assists in 105 games in three seasons with the Clippers and Knicks before finding himself out of the league.

Tomorrow we look at the 1991 Drafts. Will the bust of the NFL Draft be one of the QBs taken before Brett Favre? Check in tomorrow to find out.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1989

Almost to the 1990's, what an amazing feeling. Today we look at a man drafted between three Hall of Famers and one future one and a Jr. who wouldn't score 60 points in his short NBA career.

1989
NFL

Photo courtesy of ClevelandLeader.com and Sports Illustrated

#2 - Green Bay Packers - Tony Mandarich - Tackle -Michigan State
Mandarich was deemed a can't miss prospect. He had crazy measurables and looked like a mountain made of muscle. Unfortunately he wasn't all that good; he held out and played mostly special teams his first year. Affectionately known as The Incredible Bulk, Mandarich would be out of Green Bay in 1991 and not return to the league until 1996 when he would be solid if unspectacular with the Indianapolis Colts. Mandarich would later admit to steroid use (editors note: shock, shock); he initially blaming great work ethic for poor performance. Now I don't like blaming top picks for not being superstars and as long as they put together a couple solid seasons usually they aren't picked as the worst pick but Mandarich is different because of how bad Green Bay screwed up this pick. Taken before Mandarich was Hall of Famer Troy Aikman, taken after were Hall of Famers Barry Sanders and Derrick Thomas followed by future Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. So if you are keeping count, out of the top 5 picks there were 4 Hall of Famers and one guy that was dubbed "the best offensive line prospect of all-time" but only last a couple seasons before being sent packing. The Packers had an 80% chance of getting this pick right but failed miserably. For this, and all "The Bulk" stands for, he is our crappiest NFL first round pick of 1989. Congratulations!

NBA

Photo courtesy of hoopedia.nba.com

#23 - Atlanta Hawks - Roy Marble Jr. - SG/SF -Iowa
The NBA Draft is a different beast than the NFL Draft. Most of the time in the NFL Draft when you pick First Round you expect the pick to be a solid started, this isn't always the case with the NBA Draft. The probability is just higher in the NFL, you are picking for 22 unique starting positions; in the NBA there is 5 starting spots.  So leniency is required when looking at later first round picks. They don't need to be spectacular but to avoid worst distinction need to be a contributor. This next man wasn't. Roy Marble Jr. would play 2 seasons 89-90 and then came back for a 5 game stint with the Denver Nuggets in 93-94. Marble averages 2.1 points during his rookie year and then below 1.0 in his second go around. Career Totals: 29 games, 55 points, 32 rebounds, 12 assists, 7 steals, 3 blocks and 17 turnovers. Substance abuse cut short Marble's original run, wanna know what he is up to now? The Bleacher Report has a good article up about what the former Hawkeye has been up to.

             *SPOILER ALERT*

Photo courtesy of easterniowanewsnow.com

We will be back tomorrow with the start of a new era of picks: the 1990's.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1988

The 1988 NFL Draft was a pretty solid draft on further inspection, lets dive right in...

NFL

Photo Courtesy of DeadSpin.com

 #26 - Denver Broncos - Ted Gregory - Nose Tackle - Syracuse
Now this draft is filled with Pro Bowlers and even has three Hall of Famers, yet the Broncos got one of the rare misses in the first round of this year when they picked nose tackle Ted Gregory. Many people consider can't miss prospect Aundray Bruce (selected #1 overall) to be the biggest flop of this draft, but Bruce played around 10 years in the league and this must be taken into account. Not every pick is going to be the greatest player selected and when someone can hang around that long are they really a bust? One man considered for this spot was another Browns pick, linebacker Clifford Charlton from Florida. He only lasted a couple years before finding his way out of the league due to injuries. Obviously the Browns missed many times on linebackers in the draft, but Charlton in no way compares to Ted Gregory. Gregory was listed at 6'1" but Broncos Coach Dan Reeves, also listed at 6'1" complained that he was taller than Gregory. Prior to Gregory the Broncos didn't feel the need to go visit the prospects before the draft. Gregory didn't last one season with the Broncos finding himself traded in training camp to the Saints. He'd last one season there and then was out of the league and forgotten. Gregory just simply did not measure up by NFL standards and may have contributed to the way the draft's evaluation process has expanded over time.

NBA

Photo Courtesy of hoopedia.nba.com

 #18 - Sacramento Kings - Ricky Berry - F - San Jose State
Ricky Berry, no relation to the NBA Barry Family, was a solid rookie for the Kings averaging 11 ppg and showed promise. However, Berry wouldn't make it to his second season as the 6'8" forward would commit suicide after a dispute with his wife weeks before his 25th birthday. Berry's father was a scout for the Kings. Barry and his wife had only lived in the house 3 weeks before his death. Could have been's now surround the drafting of Barry and this tragedy.

On that note I'll see you all tomorrow with 1989's worst first round picks.

25 Years of Crappy 1st Round Draft Picks-1987

Ahh back to the years of high tops haircuts and windbreakers, the late 1980's. Today we look at 1987 and a couple of average drafts.

1987
NFL Draft

Photo courtesy of ESPN.com

#5 - Cleveland Browns - Mike Junkin - Linebacker - Duke
Why Cleveland?! Why?! These poor Cleveland fans have had to deal with so much crap and then they miss with this turd of a 5th overall pick. Junkin was supposed to be a building block for the defense. The Browns coach at the time was Marty Schottenheimer and he liked what he saw from Junkin. The Browns weren't worried that this linebacker was coming from a basketball school. Junkin only lasted 2 seasons with the Browns and finished his 3rd and final season with the Kansas City Chiefs. Junkin didn't do much of anything but break the fans of Cleveland's hearts one more time. Junkin now spends his time finding himself on the various biggest draft busts lists that NFL Network and ESPN put out. His older brother played almost 20 years in the NFL as a tight end/long snapper. If the Browns were dead set on linebacker they could have went with three time Pro Bowler Shane Conlan, drafted three picks later. The worst thing about the selection is the Steelers took a giant defensive building block in cornerback Rod Woodson only 5 picks later, adding insult to injury and flames to the fire that is Browns/Steelers.

NBA Draft

Photo courtesy of TheDraftReview.com

#17 - Portland Trail Blazers - Ronnie Murphy - SG - Jacksonville
I was going to use a less grainy, glossy photo of Mr. Murphy that I found on his Facebook page but couldn't copy the link location of his "glamour shot" so I said screw it. Most people point to 1987's Next Jordan Dennis Hopson as the biggest bust of this draft but Hopson wasn't horrendous and high expectations did him in more than his actual performance with the Nets. Murphy played a total of one season in the league. He averaged 2 points and 0.6 rebounds per game in the 18 games he played in. The Trail Blazers could have gotten All Star Reggie Lewis a few picks later for Shooting Guard or All-Star point guard Mark Jackson who was taken with the very next pick. Taking a player that only plays in 18 career games with bad averages is bad enough but when there are All-Stars left on the board it makes the mistake hurt even worse. Ronnie now spends his time creeping the Jacksonville athletic page on Facebook.

That's all for today folks, I'll be back tomorrow with 1988.