10 NBA Players Who Need to Resurrect Their Careers but Won't

The NBA is shrouded in uncertainty, especially these days with the lockout looming over everyone’s heads, but such unpredictability also pertains to player development.

When it comes to draft selection and contract negotiations, teams never know what they are really getting. Just because a player excelled at the college level or had one or two impressive seasons, does not mean they are going to continue to play like a star in the future.

When organizations offer essentially one-hit wonders fat contracts or a player’s name suddenly yields an unprecedented level of influence, we should all be on our guard. The player we see today may not necessarily be the one that shows up tomorrow.

On the ensuing slides, we will take a look at 10 players who fell from the top, defining “top” using the above criteria, and are in desperate need of resurrecting their careers.
But won’t.

Michael Redd

Michael Redd’s production has incurred quite the number of setbacks over the past three-years, and he is one of the players that needs to turn his career around, at least somewhat, the most.

Redd’s best season came back in 2006-2007, when he averaged 26.7 points per game. It must be noted he only played 53 games that year, but his stats were no fluke considering he averaged 25.4 points in 80 games the season before.

However, after this string of impressive seasons, Redd’s career took a giant leap backward. He averaged 21.4 points during the 2008-2009 campaign, yet he only played in 33 games, and over the past two-seasons, Redd has appeared in a combined 28 games.

At 32 and with a history of ACL problems, it is unlikely Redd ever returns to a 20 points per game scorer, but he cannot use this as an excuse to become complacent in his diminished abilities.

In the 28 games he has played over the past two seasons, he has only averaged a combined 8.2 points, and this is something he needs to reverse.

Redd was one of the best sharp-shooters in the league at one point, and while his injuries hamper his potential in that department, he needs to try and adjust to the point where he can at least become a scoring threat again. He needs to show that there is still a little of the “Michael Redd that once was” in him.

Numerous teams will be willing to take on Redd, but it remains highly improbable that he can resurrect his career in any capacity. 

Best-case scenario for the shooting guard is that he turns into a Tracy McGrady like role player, one who manages to stay healthy, but without being able to make a significant contribution to his team.

Jason Richardson

Jason Richardson put up 15.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game last season, numbers that don’t exactly imply his career is in need of being revived, yet it is.

Richardson is 30, and while he isn’t a kid anymore, he is far from the age of irrelevancy.

At the beginning of last season, while still with the Suns, Richardson averaged 19.3 points per game and seemed on course to have a turn around season. Unfortunately for him, he was abruptly traded to the Orlando Magic, where his average dropped to 13.9 points per game.

Yes, it was a new team and a new system, but he wound up spending the better part of the season there with increased playing time, rendering this an opportunity squandered.

Richardson has pretty much always been considered a one-trick pony. His job was to score, and for a quite some time he did that job as well as anyone, averaging as much as 23.2 points per game, in the 2005-2006 season.

Now however, while he still provides instant offense, it’s not in the amount he used to. He is no longer a prolific scorer, but rather an inconsistent one. 

Richardson’s shot selection has always been questionable, but he always found a way to rack up points. Not anymore though; he struggles to hover around the 15 points per game mark.

Richardson is one of the few on this list who are capable at resurrecting their career. He is still relatively young and can be a deadly jump shooter at times. That being said, “at times” is the key phrase here; if his inconsistencies over the past few years have been any indication, constant stellar performances are a thing of his past. 

A resurrection does not seem to be in the cards, but rather Richardson seems destined to cash in on his name, rather than his production potential.

Eddy Curry

What is there left to say about Eddy Curry in terms of basketball production? Nothing, he has made sure of that.

The 7'0'' Curry has only appeared in 10 games over the last three-seasons, a disgusting statistic. He is far removed from the days when he averaged 19.5 points and seven rebounds per game.

Curry is regarded as more of a punch line than anything else, and we tend to forget just how promising he looked early on. He seem poised to become the most dominant center in the game next to Shaquille O’Neal, yet thanks to injuries, fluctuating weight and lack of motivation, he has come to be regarded as one of the biggest busts of all-time instead.

At only 28, another team may be open to giving Curry a shot at a comeback, and for his sake, he would be wise not to waste it this time. He needs to show-up on game-day, conditioned and ready to play. He needs to become the dominant low-post scorer that he once was.

Unfortunately for Curry’s wallet though, such a resurrection is more than unlikely, and he has no one to blame but himself. His whole career he has been stubborn, unwilling to drop weight and keep it off, and refusing to work on developing his game further.

And there is no indication he has changed. This past season, he did not impress with his efforts to try and work his way back into the New York Knicks rotation. The end-result? A big fat zero next to games played.

It’s a number that Curry has been dancing around the past few years, and one that he may want to get used to.

Vince Carter

Vince Carter is 34, and while this pretty much voids the chance of him resurrecting his career, it doesn’t exempt him from this list.

The early Carter drew comparisons to Michael Jordan, a time that we can remember somewhat vividly. It was back when Carter was flying through the air with the utmost of ease and making defenders pay for giving him even a quarter of an inch of room.

Now though, Carter is a merely a ghost of his former self, and his auspicious 2004-2005 campaign is where it all began. He averaged 27.5 points per game after joining the New Jersey Nets mid-year, but ever since then his production totals have been inconsistent.

Carter’s career has been a roller coaster ride; he has been oft injured, played at a high level, played at a low-level and bounced from team to team. This is not how he or anyone else envisioned his career turning out. 

Carter averaged a combined 14 points per game last season, far off from his career average of 22.2. No one expects Carter to return to the player that could drop 50 points on any given night, but he in order to ensure that he leaves a positive legacy behind him, he at least needs to try and become a player his team can count once again.

Ultimately though, his bad knees put a hamper on his potential athleticism, making a significant improvement more than unlikely. It seems that this roller coaster of a career is destined to end on anything but a high note.

Tracy McGrady

In his third season with the Toronto Raptors, Tracy McGrady was deemed to be on the precipice of superstardom, earning him a fat seven-year contract from the Orlando Magic that summer.

Next season, his fourth in the league, McGrady did in fact transition into a full-blown star, averaging 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals per game. These numbers, especially in terms of rebounding and blocks, are incredible for a 2-guard.

McGrady rode his athleticism all the way to the top, but sooner rather than later, his all-access pass to cloud nine was revoked.

By no means had McGrady peaked after his first year with the Magic. He continued to grow as a player, even averaging 32.1 points per game during the 2002-2003 season. However, after his first season with the Houston Rockets, things started to go downhill ever so slightly.

McGrady only played 47 games in the 2004-2005 NBA season, averaging 24.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game during that time. His abilities seemed to still be there at this point, but his injury-plagued year was only a symbol of what was to come.

Fast-forward two-years and McGrady only appeared in 66 games. The very next year he appeared in only 35, and in 2009-2010, he only played in 30 combined games with the Rockets and New York Knicks.

Now, McGrady is a shell of his former self. The 32-year-old spent last season with the Detroit Pistons averaging eight points and 3.5 rebounds per game, not embarrassing, but not impressive either.

It is likely McGrady will go down in history as one of the most gifted players to ever grace the court, but he is still pretty young to already be considering retirement. He really needs to have another better than average year to further his legacy.

Unfortunately, his back, ankles and knees are not going to let him.

Rashard Lewis

Rashard Lewis, the $126 million dollar flop, peaked back in the 2006-2007 season when he averaged 22.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.

Far be it from us to question the Orlando Magic’s thought process, but how is a season like that, especially considering he only played in 60 games that year, worth so much money?

Since signing the mega-deal with Orlando, Lewis’ production has declined each season, which is not an exaggeration. Last season, splitting time between the Magic and Washington Wizards, Lewis averaged 11.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.

With two-years left on his inflated contract, Lewis needs to try and regain some of that All-Star caliber composure he once possessed, unless he is comfortable going down in NBA history as one of the biggest contract busts ever.

The 32-year-old has tools to succeed, like his impressive three-point shooting, yet he seems overmatched by many of the power forwards in the league. With his versatility, he should be known for his dominance, not just his salary.

At this point, there is pretty much nothing Lewis can do to live up to his contract, but for his sake, he needs to turn it around somewhat, and at least become significant once again..

After spending six-years descending into oblivion though, it is unlikely Lewis resurrects his career in any fashion. If it’s one thing he has done consistently over the past few years, it’s disappoint, and don’t expect that to change.

T.J. Ford

At 28-years-old, T.J. Ford still has time to make up for his recent drop in production, but it is uncertain if he will.

Ford averaged 5.4 points and 3.4 assists per game for the Indiana Pacers last season, stats that hardly scream game-changer. His struggles have not been solely caused by injuries or inabilities, but also by the Pacers’ recent lack of need for the point guard. 

In Ford’s first year with Indiana, he had the best season of his career, averaging 14.9 points and 5.3 assists. After that though, his playing time was cut and his role diminished, especially after the acquisition of Darren Collison.

Ford is a free-agent and could serve a title contending team that needs a cheap point guard on the fly, like the Los Angeles Lakers or Miami Heat, very well, and while this would be a favorable situation for Ford, it is unlikely he turns his career back around. 

The past two-years have been anything but a bright spot for the point guard, as he often struggled during his brief stints on the court.

After spending two-years in an unfavorable setting, rekindling his knack for steaming past defenders and providing instant offense may prove to be truly impossible.

Andrei Kirilenko

Andrei Kirilenko has been on a downward spiral since the 2005-2006 season in which he averaged 15.3 points, eight rebounds, 3.2 blocks and 1.5 steals per game.

At his best, Kirilenko was a defensive mastermind that had an understated, yet versatile offensive game. However, whether he became too complacent after signing his $80 million monster deal with the Utah Jazz or truly was playing over his head prior to the contract, it doesn’t matter. The fact is his game is not what it once was.

Last season, Kirilenko averaged 11.7 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. His defense may still be stellar, yet it is not superstar material, and he has descended into the realm of mediocrity on offense.

At 30-years-old, is it possible for Kirilenko to reverse the label of “disappointment” that he has been assigned? Sure, but will he, though? Probably not.

Kirilenko has played himself into a third option type player on offense, and whether he re-signs with the Jazz or opts to take his not-so-groundbreaking talents to New Jersey, this is where he will stand.

The pinnacle of Kirilenko’s career has come and gone, and he has shown no indication of regaining any of its former momentum.

What is the best-case scenario that we can hope for in regards to Kirilenko? That he maintains his defensive posture, and avoids becoming Jared Jeffries irrelevant on offense.

Gilbert Arenas

Gilbert Arenas is just a shell of who he was a few years ago; he is now more famous for his salary and drawing guns in the locker room than for anything he has actually done on the court.

Arenas used to be the quintessential example of prolific, averaging 29.3 points per game at his peak in the 2005-2006 season. He was known for being elusive as well as aggressive in attacking the basket. Those days are long gone though.

Injuries and off-the-court conflicts have been the primary motivating factors behind Arenas’ demise. He has failed to stay healthy for a full season since the 2006-2007 campaign, and he has been unable rebuild his public image after the late 2009 gun-wielding incident.

Arenas is only 29, and the fact that he seems to have peaked, or been an impostor, early on in his career is discouraging. 

Last season, splitting time with the Washington Wizards and the Orlando Magic, Arenas averaged a combined 10.8 points and 3.9 assists per game. These are numbers that exceed the expectations of a player drafted in the second round, but do not even meet those a player who is under a nine-figure contract.

Arenas needs to resurrect his career by displaying the same flashy and aggressive play-style that propelled him into superstardom. He needs to get motivated to remain healthy and prove his critics wrong because right now, he is too complacent.

Such a turnaround is unlikely however, as the $111 million-man seems poised to remain only a pawn in contractual games. 

Kenyon Martin

After averaging 16.7 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in the 2003-2004 campaign, Kenyon Martin inked one of the largest contracts in NBA history with the Denver Nuggets, earning him $93 million over seven seasons.

It was all downhill from there.

Martin's first season with the Nuggets is the only one he managed to average over 15 points per game, a huge disappoinmentt since the organization saw him as a 20 and 10 guy.

Additionally, after that season, injuries began to plague the not-so-prolific power forward. He played a combined 58 games over the next two seasons, and made it clear he would never be the dominant rebounding machine he once was.

Fast forward a few years, to the present in fact, and Martin closes out his contract having played over 70 games in a single season only once in the past eight years, dating all the way back to his days in New Jersey. Furthermore, he is now a free agent, who felt that the contract offered to Al Harrington last summer was his money.

The 33-year-old Martin is in desperate need of turning his career around, not just to stave off the label of contract bust, but the stereotype of bust in general. He was drafted 1st overall in 2000, and despite the two or three promising seasons he had, he has never amounted to a true star.

Surprisingly though, Martin's name holds substantial weight, which I'm convinced is a result of Jason Kidd making him look good during his days in New Jersey. While his name is associated with stardom, his production never, again at least, will be.

The fact is Martin is a 33-year-old with bad knees, and the 8.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game the Nuggets saw from him last season is the best any interested team could expect.

Martin is certainly in need of resurrecting his career, but it’s just not in the cards. Mediocrity is.

You can follow Dan Favale on Twitter here @DannyFavs2033.