Allen Iverson and 7 NBA Players Whose Careers Ended Too Early

The NBA is full of players who enjoy long and illustrious careers, in addition to players who fizzle out before they reach their prime.

This list isn't about either of those kinds of players.  The list ahead is comprised of NBA players whose careers ended way too early.

Whether their careers ended because of non-basketball related health issues, on-the-court injuries or because they were traded away from "their" team too early, these players' careers were cut short before they truly reached their full potential.

Ahead is a list of seven NBA players whose careers ended way too early.  Enjoy.

Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway

Anfernee Hardaway's NBA career didn't exactly "end" early, but because of constant injuries his effectiveness declined at way too early of an age.

Hardaway's career started off with a bang when he entered the NBA with the Orlando Magic after a stellar career at the University of Memphis.  In his rookie season in Orlando, he averaged an impressive 15.7 ppg, 6.5 apg and 5.2 rpg, which earned him NBA All-Rookie First Team honors that year.  

Throughout the next five years with the Magic, Hardaway went to four NBA All-Star Games and was named to two All-NBA First Team honors.

In the 1997-98 season Hardaway missed nearly the entire season with a devastating knee injury, and Hardaway never truly recovered from that, averaging 10.0-plus ppg in only four out of the next 11 seasons.

Hardaway was sent to the Phoenix Suns in the summer of 1999 to play with point guard Jason Kidd, but unfortunately because of nagging injuries to both Kidd and Hardaway the two never really came together, and Kidd was traded away to the New Jersey Nets.

Hardaway's career, which included stops in Toronto, back to Phoenix, New York and Miami, was never really the same.  It's a shame that Hardaway never recovered from his knee/foot injuries, because he was one heck of a player when he was 100 percent healthy.   

Greg Oden

While Greg Oden's NBA career isn't exactly over, it hasn't really begun either.  Oden has been plagued with knee injury after knee injury, resulting in at least four surgeries over the past four years.

Entering his fourth season in the NBA, Oden has only played a total of 82 games.  When Oden has been on the court he's produced at a pretty consistent level, averaging 9.4 ppg, 7.3 rpg and 1.4 bpg, on an impressive 57.7 percent shooting from the field.  Oden even led the Trailblazers to a playoff appearance during his "rookie" season in 2008-09.

Sure, there's hope that Oden can recover from his recent micro-fracture surgeries and still have a productive NBA career, but if history tells us anything, it's that seven-footers recovering from recurring knee injuries is a rarity in the NBA.

There's a high likelihood that Oden will miss the entire shortened 2011-12 season, especially after undergoing yet another knee surgery just a few days ago.  After this season Oden will become an unrestricted free agent, and with so many questions surrounding his health there's a high likelihood that teams won't pull the trigger on him.

If no one signs Oden this offseason, there's a high likelihood that his career could be over, which is a shame because we've yet to see the best out of Greg Oden. 

Yao Ming

Yao Ming came into the NBA as the first overall pick of the 2002 NBA Draft, after playing five seasons in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).  Over the span of five years, Yao played 122 games in China, which is part of the reason why his days in the NBA were cut short.

In Yao's first three seasons in the NBA, he played all but two of the 246 games, which led many to believe that Yao's massive 7'6'', 310 pound frame could handle the pace and demands of the NBA.  Unfortunately, those three seasons were the only of Yao's eight-year NBA career that he actually played in nearly all 82 games.

In the following five seasons, Yao played in only 242 out of the possible 410 games because of injuries to his left foot, right knee and left ankle.  The Rockets tried to prolong Yao's career by limiting him to only 24 minutes per game, while also not playing him in back-to-back nights.  Unfortunately that wasn't enough, as Yao developed yet another stress fracture in his left ankle that ultimately ended his career in the NBA.

In July of 2011, Yao announced his retirement from the NBA after a productive eight-year career that ended with career averages of 19.0 ppg, 9.2 rpg and 1.9 bpg.

It's a shame that Yao's career had to end the way it did, but at least while he was healthy he was a productive player that helped bridge the gap between Chinese fans and the NBA.  

Brandon Roy

Brandon Roy's journey to the NBA was filled with hard  work.  Roy retook the SAT test four times just to make the requirements to get into Washington, all while working a job paying $11 an hour cleaning shipping crates because he was unsure if he'd actually make it into college.

After getting into Washington, Roy stayed for all four years of eligibility and earned his college degree while becoming a lottery pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.

Roy transitioned into the NBA with ease, becoming the 2007 Rookie of the Year, while averaging 16.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 4.0 apg and 1.2 spg.  Roy's production only increased throughout the next three years, earning him three consecutive NBA All-Star appearances.

Starting in the 2009-10 season, Roy's degenerative knees took center stage, forcing him to miss 17 games that season and 35 the next season.  In January 2011 Roy underwent surgery on both knees, and when he returned in late February he wasn't the same player.  

After a somewhat impressive performance against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2010-11 NBA playoff there was hope for Roy going into the 2011-12 season, but that was short lived.  In the weeks before the start of the 2011-12 season, Roy announced that he would be retiring, because of degeneration and lack of cartilage in his knees.

Brandon Roy was one of the brightest stars in the NBA over the past few seasons, and we'll never get to see just how great of a player he could had become.  

Jay Williams

Jay Williams' name is synonymous with two things: the Duke Blue Devils and NBA players whose careers ended prematurely.

Williams entered the NBA as the Chicago Bulls' second overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, after an impressive collegiate career at Duke University where he averaged 19.3 ppg, 6.0 apg and 2.2 spg over the span of his three years there.

In his first and only season with the Chicago Bulls, Williams averaged 9.5 ppg, 4.7 apg and 1.2 spg, which were pretty impressive statistics for a rookie point guard in the NBA.  Unfortunately for Williams and the Bulls, that's the only NBA production that came from Williams' one-year career.

During the summer after his rookie season, Williams was injured in a motorcycle accident in which he wasn't wearing a helmet and suffered a fractured pelvis, a torn ACL in his left knee and a severed nerve in his left leg.  Any one of those injuries would be enough to sideline an NBA career, nevertheless all three at once.  What made the accident worse is that it broke the contract he signed with the Bulls, which resulted in Williams being waived from the team.

After several failed attempts at returning to the NBA with the New Jersey Nets and the Miami Heat, Williams ultimately transitioned into his post-NBA career as a college basketball analyst for ESPN.

The worst part of Jay Williams' career-ending injuries is that unlike other players on this list, his could have easily been avoided. 

Len Bias

Len Bias's promising NBA career never actually began, but it still undoubtedly ended way too early.

Coming out of the University of Maryland, Bias averaged 16.4 ppg and 5.7 rpg.  Even more impressive, Bias earned the 1986 ACC Player of the Year honor during his senior season, in which he averaged 23.2 ppg and 7.0 apg.

Based on that impressive senior season production, Bias became the second overall pick of the 1986 NBA Draft, which landed him on the Boston Celtics' roster.  After traveling to New York City for the draft announcement, Bias returned to his dorm room at the University of Maryland.  

Later that morning EMTs responded to a call to Bias's room where they found Bias unresponsive.  Attempts to revive him were unsuccessful, ending his NBA career as quickly as it started.

Bias's death was a result of cocaine use that night, which makes his untimely death all that more tragic.  The saddest part of Len Bias's tragic death is that it was 100 percent avoidable.

While we'll never know how great of an NBA player Len Bias could have been, his tragic death sparked anti-drug advocacy on the part of his parents, which undoubtedly has impacted thousands of lives.  

Allen Iverson

Allen Iverson will undoubtedly go down as one of the best point/shooting guard combos in the history of the NBA with career averages of 26.7 ppg, 6.2 apg and 3.7 rpg.

While Iverson's career didn't necessarily "end" early, his career with his hometown 76ers ended too early because of his falling out with Philadelphia after the 2006-07 NBA season.

In 2007, Iverson was sent to the Denver Nuggets, where he joined pure scorer Carmelo Anthony and formed one of the most deadly scoring combinations in the NBA that year.  In two years with the Nuggets, Iverson averaged 25.6 ppg, which was impressive but didn't help the Nuggets become a better team.

Iverson was then dealt during the 2008-09 season to the Detroit Pistons, followed by signing a one-year contract during the 2009-10 season with the Grizzlies then returning to Philadelphia the next year.  Over those three years, Iverson only played in 82 out of 246 games, which all but ended his career in the NBA.

After a short stint in the Turkish basketball league, Iverson tried to make a return to the NBA, but so far there haven't been any teams interested in signing the 36-year-old.  Iverson's still got some gas left in the tank, and any team looking for some production off the bench would be wise to sign him.

It's a shame that Iverson and the 76ers couldn't work out their issues back in 2006, because if they had, Iverson undoubtedly could have helped the 76ers stay in the title hunt in the Eastern Conference.

Iverson will undoubtedly go down as one of the best to play the game, but his career will be tarnished by not being able to stay with the 76ers for the entirety of his NBA career.