Lakers: How underrated is James Worthy

[Thread]

dude lived in the shadow of his teammates and he probably deserved more hype than his actually got. could've been the #1 on an average team during his era but i doubt he would want to play on a mediocre team and end up retiring w/o a ring

No.

He needed that shadow, most particularly Magic's. Without that he woulda most likely ruined himself after the '84 debacle.

[TDMVPDPOY]

couldve been franchise player, but drafted onto stack team to play banana role...

[dunkman]

He's overrated, considering 'Nique barely made the HOF and wasn't selected to the NBA 50 best team.

They were the same draft class, both SF's. But 'Nique was clearly better.

[LkrFan]

He's overrated, considering 'Nique barely made the HOF and wasn't selected to the NBA 50 best team.

They were the same draft class, both SF's. But 'Nique was clearly better.

[dunkman]

You obviously didn't saw 'Nique play. The difference between him and Worthy was ridiculous.

[LkrFan]

You obviously didn't saw 'Nique play. The difference between him and Worthy was ridiculous.

And you're either drunk (again) or English is not your first language. It's OK, I'll give you a pass.

I've seen them both play. The only two things Dominique was better than Worthy at: dunking and not winning championships.

[dunkman]

And you're either drunk (again) or English is not your first language. It's OK, I'll give you a pass.

I've seen them both play. The only two things Dominique was better than Worthy at: dunking and not winning championships.

Just say no to drugs, Lkrtag. You must stop already. Worthy was a good dunker too. Give 'Nique Magic and Jabbar and Worthy Doc and Willis and let's see who's winning championships.

[LkrFan]

Just say no to drugs, Lkrtag. You must stop already. Worthy was a good dunker too. Give 'Nique Magic and Jabbar and Worthy Doc and Willis and let's see who's winning championships.

- if you're trying to insult me, at least spell it right ole inebriated ne

Worthy is a winner. If he had his own team and was #1 option, he'd have even better numbers than he put up. Thing is, we didn't need him to go off every night and score tons of buckets. He did a little bit of everything.

BTW - ask Bird who he thought was the better player. Guarantee you he won't say Wilkins tbh.

[Blake]

Just say no to drugs, Lkrtag.

gonna pop some tags...only got 20 bucks in my pocket....this is in awesome...

[Blake]

He's overrated, considering 'Nique barely made the HOF and wasn't selected to the NBA 50 best team.

They were the same draft class, both SF's. But 'Nique was clearly better.

Nique not making the 50 greatest list was a crock of biased .

[Thread]

^I don't do "50 greatest" & HOF & MIP & MVP. All that nonsense. No.

But, [they've] always treated Wlkins with derision & snickers. It happens like that sometimes. Yer cut-out, roped off and there ain't a damn thing you can do about it.

[Blake]

^I don't do "50 greatest" & HOF & MIP & MVP. All that nonsense. No.

You just do TOSB

[dunkman]

Nique not making the 50 greatest list was a crock of biased .

Not sure what happened there, tbh. Worthy was good too, but Nique was at another level.

[BobaFett1]

Nique played on some Hawk teams that could never go far,

[Blake]

Not sure what happened there, tbh. Worthy was good too, but Nique was at another level.

same thing with McHale, imo.

[Blake]

And Robert Parish.

Celtics have always been overrated. East Coast media bias and all that.

[Thread]

You just do TOSB

I invented itPERIOD

[Blake]

I invented itPERIOD

It's a moniker that fits Kobe and even Nash well these days.

[Thread]

It's a moniker that fits Kobe

Please.

[Killakobe81]

First off, this thread would have been a legit discussion if it was standalone, but it was obviously a spin off of the annoyingly stupid Paul Pierce thread.

There are factors working for and against Worthy here.

First thing, he played on the Lakers, and we know that all Lakers players are overrated. That overratedness usually eases up a few years after they leave the Lakers (Shaq) or retire (Magic), but still, they are all more highly regarded than their actual play warranted.

On the other hand, Worthy played his entire career under the shadows of Magic and Kareem, so he got underrated a little due to it.

That said, I feel Worthy was slightly overrated. People always claimed that he could have a Nique like career (ridiculous stats, no rings) if he played on another non-LA/Celtic team in the league, but I do no think it's true. Worthy was a great low post scorer, have great handles for a big guy, can pass, can defend, and shows up at the biggest moments, but let's face it, a lot of his points came on running the court like a mad man. Sure, you can attribute those points to him being one of the best running big man in the game, but fact remains that he was not the creator of those points, Magic was.

We saw a glimpse of what Worthy was capable of on an average team (post Magic Lakers) in 92, and the results aren't in favour in him. His statistics went south a bit despite taking the same amount of shots (nagging injuries could have something to do with it). In fact, his stats were getting better and better in Magic's last few years as Worthy took on more of the scoring role with the aging of Jabbar, but his efficiency kept going down. He became a better passer, as the offense runs through him more, but his efficiency plummeted, which further supports the theory that Worthy is a great finisher, but not a fantastic creator.

Though I agree Pierce thread was silly, not sure every Laker is overrated. Shaq is to a degree how the does Duncan have more career rebounds?! Pau is a bit too by Kobe haters. Baylor is underrated for example ...
Kobe is overrated by some and underrated by others ...

[Blake]

Please.

Begging ain't your style

[lefty]

And Robert Parish.

Celtics have always been overrated. East Coast media bias and all that.

The East was tougher than the West in the 80’s

[ambchang]

Though I agree Pierce thread was silly, not sure every Laker is overrated. Shaq is to a degree how the does Duncan have more career rebounds?! Pau is a bit too by Kobe haters. Baylor is underrated for example ...
Kobe is overrated by some and underrated by others ...

I am probably contradicting mysel, what the , I am. Pau is actually underrated by lots. Baylor wasn't really underrated, just that people didn't care because he was so long ago. Compared to the other players in his era, Baylor got not cred (eg pe domes to mind).

Kobe is probably he most overrated superstar in the league. Every single statistic shows that he was not, and never will be, as valuable as shaq and Duncan, and yet the 5 rings argument pushes him way above the two in most casual fans minds.

[Thread]

Begging ain't your style

[Blake]

The East was tougher than the West in the 80’s

To clarify, Celtic players themselves have always been overrated......Robert Parish being a good example of that.

There is absolutely no way that dude deserves to be on the top 50 list when you look at who got left off