L.Kizzle
09-30-2014, 03:43 PM
I was looking back at Clyde Drexler's NBA career, more specifically his All-Star selections and I find it weird that he only started in four of his ten selections.
Coming from a very exciting college team and being a young exciting (high flyer) player in his early days, you'd think he be very popular.
-He didn't enter the top five in his rookie and sophomore seasons.
-In his first selection in 1986, Alvin Robertson is voted a starter. Of course Magic was the other guard vote, but I wont even bring him up. Clyde finished 9th in voting behind the likes of former All-Star Norm Nixon, rookie Chris Mullin, veterans John Lucas and Johnny Davis, Fat Lever and Michael Cooper.
-1987 Alvin Robertson is once again voted a starter but Clyde (besides not making it that season, which was a major snub) he finished 4th place. I think Portland had the 2nd or 3rd best record in the West going into the All-Star break. Hometown player Tom Chamber was named as Ralph Sampson's replacement, when it should have been Clyde.
-1988 Clyde is back on the squad and Alvin is not a starter this year, Fat Lever is. Clyde once again comes in 4th place.
-1989 Clyde is an All-Star. Alvin and Fat are gone so it's Clyde's turn right, wring. Clyde stays at the four spot and incoming is John Stockton and ... Dale Ellis as the 2nd leading vote getter for the guards.
-1990 John Stockton joins Magic in the line-up. Derek Harper comes in 3rd above Clyde at you guessed it, 4th.
-1991, Clyde gets a boost from his NBA Finals appearance, but it's not enough to overtake emerging little man Kevin Johnson.
-1992, not sure what has happened, but Clyde goes from 7th overall in the West to the top guard and 2nd overall in the West. Only Jordan, Barkley, Bird and Karl Malone had more votes than him that season.
-1993, Clyde is again 2nd in the West this time to Barkley and again 5th overall behind Jordan, Pippen and Shaq.
-1994, Once again Clyde is 2nd in the West behind Chuck. Shaq and Pippen are above him, but so are Kenny Anderson (5th leading vote getter) and BJ Armstrong (4th leading vote getter) ... and we think voting today is bad. :biggums:
-1995, not only did Drexler not make the All-Star team (which he should have) he's not even in the top ten guards. I find it puzzling that the likes of Kendall Gill, Vernon Maxwell and two Dallas Mavericks (Kidd and Jackson) had more votes than Drexler. He was 22/6/5 and Portland was 25-20 at the break (he was traded during All-Star break) Maybe he wasn't on the ballot, which is even more puzzling.
**SOMEONE NEEDS TO INVESTIGATE THIS MATTER**
-Yet the very next season, he puts up his highest voting yet surpassing 1 million. Only Hakeem and Barkley have more votes than him out west. Out east Hill, MJ, Shaq and Pippen were over Drexler.
-1997 was his last season as an All-Star. He comes in 3rd behind Payton and Stockton. Still 8th overall in the West.
-His last season he'd miss the classic coming in at #7 (he still avg 18/5/5 better than everyone in front of him besides Kidd and Payton and Mitch Richmond who was two spots in back), overtaken by a new crop of players Kobe, Kidd, Eddie Jones and Marbury.
It seems like Clyde Drexler didn't really become a household name until the Blazers made the NBA Finals in 1990. Before then, guys like Alvin Robertson, Fat Lever, Dale Ellis and Derek Harper were more popular than him (and this is just the West guards.) Over in the East, Xavier McDaniel, Mark Price, Doc Rivers, Larry Nance were getting more love than him too. Dominique Wilkins was easily the more popular player until about the turn of the decade.
Coming from a very exciting college team and being a young exciting (high flyer) player in his early days, you'd think he be very popular.
-He didn't enter the top five in his rookie and sophomore seasons.
-In his first selection in 1986, Alvin Robertson is voted a starter. Of course Magic was the other guard vote, but I wont even bring him up. Clyde finished 9th in voting behind the likes of former All-Star Norm Nixon, rookie Chris Mullin, veterans John Lucas and Johnny Davis, Fat Lever and Michael Cooper.
-1987 Alvin Robertson is once again voted a starter but Clyde (besides not making it that season, which was a major snub) he finished 4th place. I think Portland had the 2nd or 3rd best record in the West going into the All-Star break. Hometown player Tom Chamber was named as Ralph Sampson's replacement, when it should have been Clyde.
-1988 Clyde is back on the squad and Alvin is not a starter this year, Fat Lever is. Clyde once again comes in 4th place.
-1989 Clyde is an All-Star. Alvin and Fat are gone so it's Clyde's turn right, wring. Clyde stays at the four spot and incoming is John Stockton and ... Dale Ellis as the 2nd leading vote getter for the guards.
-1990 John Stockton joins Magic in the line-up. Derek Harper comes in 3rd above Clyde at you guessed it, 4th.
-1991, Clyde gets a boost from his NBA Finals appearance, but it's not enough to overtake emerging little man Kevin Johnson.
-1992, not sure what has happened, but Clyde goes from 7th overall in the West to the top guard and 2nd overall in the West. Only Jordan, Barkley, Bird and Karl Malone had more votes than him that season.
-1993, Clyde is again 2nd in the West this time to Barkley and again 5th overall behind Jordan, Pippen and Shaq.
-1994, Once again Clyde is 2nd in the West behind Chuck. Shaq and Pippen are above him, but so are Kenny Anderson (5th leading vote getter) and BJ Armstrong (4th leading vote getter) ... and we think voting today is bad. :biggums:
-1995, not only did Drexler not make the All-Star team (which he should have) he's not even in the top ten guards. I find it puzzling that the likes of Kendall Gill, Vernon Maxwell and two Dallas Mavericks (Kidd and Jackson) had more votes than Drexler. He was 22/6/5 and Portland was 25-20 at the break (he was traded during All-Star break) Maybe he wasn't on the ballot, which is even more puzzling.
**SOMEONE NEEDS TO INVESTIGATE THIS MATTER**
-Yet the very next season, he puts up his highest voting yet surpassing 1 million. Only Hakeem and Barkley have more votes than him out west. Out east Hill, MJ, Shaq and Pippen were over Drexler.
-1997 was his last season as an All-Star. He comes in 3rd behind Payton and Stockton. Still 8th overall in the West.
-His last season he'd miss the classic coming in at #7 (he still avg 18/5/5 better than everyone in front of him besides Kidd and Payton and Mitch Richmond who was two spots in back), overtaken by a new crop of players Kobe, Kidd, Eddie Jones and Marbury.
It seems like Clyde Drexler didn't really become a household name until the Blazers made the NBA Finals in 1990. Before then, guys like Alvin Robertson, Fat Lever, Dale Ellis and Derek Harper were more popular than him (and this is just the West guards.) Over in the East, Xavier McDaniel, Mark Price, Doc Rivers, Larry Nance were getting more love than him too. Dominique Wilkins was easily the more popular player until about the turn of the decade.