Hugely Anticipated Sports Debuts That Fell Flat
One thing that's great about sports is certain moments become so anticipated that it's hard for fans to sit still.
While we're all guilty of doing it during the first few days of March Madness, there are other times when a debut of a team or player get us revved up to watch.
Unfortunately, even though we're all counting down the hours for the game to start, the event doesn't always live up to its billing.
So what are some of the biggest debut letdowns in sports? I found a few that probably led to changing the channel about halfway through the darn thing.
Michael Jordan's Baseball Debut
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It wasn't that sports fans were hoping for Michael Jordan to give up basketball at the peak of his career and take on the new challenge of baseball, but, once he did, the entire world watched his every swing—err, whiff.
Just when everyone believed MJ was the greatest athlete on the planet, capable of picking up any task and succeeding at it, he absolutely let us down when wearing a glove and holding a bat.
His stat line?
A .202 batting average, three homers, 51 RBI, 30 stolen bases and a whopping 11 errors in the field, proving that Jordan was born to play hoops and not wear a ball cap.
Thankfully, he came to his senses and had another hugely anticipated debut—back on the basketball court—where he went on to win another three NBA titles.
Reggie Bush
2 of 10Now, I don't want to make it sound like Reggie Bush had a terrible debut in his first pro game for the New Orleans Saints back in 2006, but let's face it: With the fanfare he had coming out of Southern Cal that year, we probably all expected a bit more.
Save for an 18-yard run, Bush wasn't exactly electrifying, even though New Orleans gave him plenty of opportunities to shine. He ended up with 67 rushing yards and 52 receiving yards on seven catches.
While he did finish with a healthy 141 total yards—via a combination of runs, catches and return yardage—for a dude who was hyped as the next Gale Sayers, I would say he was quite pedestrian.
Bush went on to have a decent rookie season but nothing that made any of us sit back and think, "Wow, this guy is a once-in-a-generation talent."
Curt Schilling's First Career Start
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In a 20-year career that may end with a Hall of Fame induction, former pitcher Curt Schilling proved that he had some nasty stuff each time he took the mound.
Well, that is, except for his first 10 career MLB starts.
After a rusty debut for the Baltimore Orioles back in 1988, Schill carried a depressing 0-4 record with an 8.02 ERA.
Not exactly Cooperstown-type stuff there, huh?
He eventually got it together over the next couple of years, with an ERA that never reached higher than 3.81. Once he was traded to the Houston Astros and given the opportunity to start, he began to flourish.
But, it wasn't all roses for him in the beginning.
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Lionel Messi
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There's no denying that Argentine international and Barcelona club striker Lionel Messi is one of the top soccer players on the planet today, but when his international career first began back in 2005, it wasn't nearly as decorated.
Coming in with the label as the next Diego Maradona, the former under-20 superstar came on as a substitute in a match against Hungary in the 63rd minute for his first senior-team cap.
And that was about the highlight of Messi's day, as just two minutes later, he got sent off with a red card after the referee alleged he elbowed an opposing player.
With such a disastrous debut, it's understandable why the then 18-year-old was seen crying in the dressing room afterward.
In the end, the Argentine has seemed to get the last laugh, as he has become an international icon.
Miami Heat Unveil the Big Three
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When did signing two free agents become a spectacle for fans to attend a party and celebrate as if the team had already won a championship?
Well, as we saw back in 2010 when the Miami Heat inked LeBron James and Chris Bosh to join incumbent superstar Dwyane Wade, it's apparently a good idea.
That is, until the reality hit that the real games weren't going to be as easy as everyone initially thought.
Shooting just 41 percent as a team against the Boston Celtics, Miami's Big Three failed to live up to the hype that surrounded them on opening night, combining for 52 points on 33 percent shooting and committing 15 turnovers in an 88-80 loss.
The adjustment period lasted a few more games, as they sat at just 12-8 after 20 games, before jelling and eventually reaching the NBA Finals—where they lost to the Dallas Mavericks.
The Quarterbacks of the 1999 NFL Draft
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No. 1: Tim Couch. No. 2: Donovan McNabb. No. 3: Akili Smith. No. 11: Daunte Culpepper. No. 12: Cade McNown.
With five signal-callers taken in the first 11 selections of the 1999 NFL draft, plenty of pundits and fans believed that the '99 class could be as memorable as the vaunted 1983 one, which featured John Elway, Todd Blackledge, Jim Kelly, Tony Eason, Ken O'Brien and Dan Marino—with three of them making the Hall of Fame.
Unfortunately for the players listed above, that never happened.
Other than McNabb and Culpepper—who had a few good seasons before flaming out—the rest of the quarterbacks had putrid opening games, rookie years and, overall, careers.
Couch, Smith and McNown played a combined 11 seasons in the league, again proving that, just because a guy is touted coming out of college, he doesn't always translate into a star.
Greg Oden's First Season
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Anytime a player is the No. 1 overall pick in any sport, there is going to be a little extra attention on him.
That's why, after the Portland Trail Blazers drafted Greg Oden out of Ohio State in 2007, plenty of people were keeping tabs on what might ensue. Oden had the look of a potential franchise big man, capable of scoring, rebounding and defending like, dare I say it, a young Bill Russell.
Rather than prove to be a cornerstone for the Blazers, though, Oden's rookie year was cut short before it even began, as he underwent knee surgery a few months after the draft.
It only got worse from there.
Even after making his debut the following season, Oden was only able to play in 82 career games while with the Blazers. Even after trying to get back on the floor, he has all but accepted that his hoops career was a bust.
Not too many people saw that coming.
LeBron James' Return to Cleveland
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Just like he experienced with the Miami Heat four years ago when he went to a superteam, LeBron James is going through the same growing pains with the Cleveland Cavaliers this season.
The feel-good story of the NBA offseason saw James write the words, "I'm coming home" in an essay with Sports Illustrated back in July, setting up a drama that was worthy of a Hollywood movie.
With opening night pitting him up against good friend Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks in an atmosphere that felt worthy of an NBA Finals game, James and the Cavs stunk it up, getting shocked by the Knicks 95-90.
While the opening-night loss was understandable with nerves and anxiousness playing a major part, LeBron and Cleveland's struggles since have a few concerned.
Peyton Manning's First Ever Game
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When all is said and done, there's a very good chance that quarterback Peyton Manning will go down as the greatest passer in NFL history.
And while he still catches some heat for his inability to perform on the biggest stage—which, come on now, we're nitpicking, aren't we—Manning's career was even less brilliant in his debut with the Indianapolis Colts back in 1998.
After being selected No. 1 overall, Manning was considered the most NFL-ready signal-caller in years, destined to become as great as, well, he is now.
Yet, in his very first game against his idol Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins, Manning had a putrid day, completing just 56 percent of his passes and throwing one touchdown and three interceptions in a 24-15 loss.
In fact, while Manning did set a then rookie record for most passing yards in a first season, 1998 was one year that he probably would rather forget, as he went just 3-13 and led the league in interceptions with 28.
David Beckham Joins MLS
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It was one of the biggest sports stories of the past decade-plus—international soccer icon David Beckham would be taking his talents across the pond from Europe to suit up for the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The move was unprecedented in that, well, U.S. soccer had never had a player like Becks before. He was looked at to spread the sport in the States and have a major influence on attracting other stars to follow his lead to Major League Soccer.
After inking one of the largest contracts in sports history, Beckham's debut was, well, flat, as he came in as a sub in the 71st minute and didn't have much of an impact.
Making things worse, Becks didn't even play in the next four games due to injury, leaving everyone on hold for this messiah to revive MLS.
He eventually did leave his mark on the Galaxy—leading them to two straight MLS Cup wins—but that first performance wasn't nearly what fans and TV cameras had hoped for.
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