1) Jermaine O’Neal
Best Year in Portland: 4.5 ppg, .3 apg, 3.4 rpg
Best Year Away: 20.8 ppg, 2.0 apg, 10.3 rpg
In what has got to be the biggest “Wow, I did not see that coming” moment of recent Blazers memory, O’Neal went from end of the bench to one of the best Power Forwards in the NBA just by switching jerseys. The effect was immediate, as O’Neal led the NBA in blocks just one season after leaving Portland. In Rip City, he had to play behind Wallace and Arvydas Sabonis, so it’s understandable that a kid straight out of high school was shoved into a reserved role. But unlike Barton and Mills, Portland let a true superstar escape and could only watch from afar.
Thank you very much, I didn’t want to be here anyway.
We traded O’Neal to Indiana for Dale Davis. Let’s just say there’s a reason we remember O’Neal more than Davis, and it’s not just the brutal fight in Detroit. Davis was a solid addition don’t get me wrong, but came nothing close to O’Neal in his prime.
Next: More From Rip City Project
What Could’ve Been
If O’Neal had his breakout season with Portland just a year earlier, I think Portland would’ve been the 1999-2000 NBA champions. His youth and shot blocking ability would’ve given Shaq a lot of trouble and they would’ve dominated Indiana in the finals just like Los Angeles did.
Do you agree with this list? Did we miss anyone? Let us know in the comments section.