Name the players who upon FIRST seeing their highlights you simply went "WOW"

[CavaliersFTW]

For me off the top of my head:

Magic Johnson

Pistol Pete

Larry Bird

Hakeem Olajuwon

Wilt Chamberlain

Michael Jordan

These guys plus probably some that I'm forgetting got me hooked on basketball with their dazzling plays and abilities.

[elementally morale]

Magic
Hakeem
Bird
.......

But I saw all their careers live, so it's not that big a deal. There are two newcomers I had that experience with though:

Rubio
Irving

[La Frescobaldi]

Pete Maravich.

Earl Monroe.

Connie Hawkins.

Tiny Nate Archibald on the playgrounds was insanity turned loose on the world

[La Frescobaldi]

Magic
Hakeem
Bird
.......

But I saw all their careers live, so it's not that big a deal. There are two newcomers I had that experience with though:

Rubio
Irving

[COLOR="Blue"]yeah no kidding. Ain't nothing wrong with the world when guys like that are showing up in the NBA!!![/COLOR]

[illogik]

I think it's obvious but Dwyane Wade.

[RoundMoundOfReb]

Magic has the best highlights imo.

[Crystallas]

Nique might be my all-time favorite in the wow-factor.

[Deuce Bigalow]

Magic, MJ, and Kobe.

It certainly was not Wilt OP

[ILLsmak]

For me off the top of my head:

Magic Johnson

Pistol Pete

Larry Bird

Hakeem Olajuwon

Wilt Chamberlain

Michael Jordan

These guys plus probably some that I'm forgetting got me hooked on basketball with their dazzling plays and abilities.

I've seen a lot of bball. Seen a lot of crazy shit. Like I said in a LARRY thread (that was probably claiming he was overrated), dude is the only guy that I've seen that I was like WAT in terms of highlights. But I started watching the NBA when a lot of good players were balling.

-Smak

[Scholar]

When YouTube was first introduced and it wasn't as massively widespread as it is today, my brother showed me a top 10 video of Vince Carter. I was amazed. There were a lot of dunks I had never seen before, including the windmill off the backboard during a fastbreak in his Toronto days.

[elementally morale]

When YouTube was first introduced and it wasn't as massively widespread as it is today, my brother showed me a top 10 video of Vince Carter. I was amazed. There were a lot of dunks I had never seen before, including the windmill off the backboard during a fastbreak in his Toronto days.

Absolutely correct. Vince Carter blew my mind, too.

[9512]

To personally it was Michael J.

That double (triple) pump layup he did at home against the Nets. He went past derrick Coleman, Chris dudley, and some 1 else. You could see one of the bench warmers from the nets bench reacting genuinely impressed. I think even Sam bowie was on the bench and reacted. Poor Sam lol he had to watch a lot of those wow plays from MJ like the rest of the world

while the rest of the world ragged on him for being drafted before MJ

And when I saw that move it was early 90s. It was one of those vhs tapes released by the NBA and I was 13 at the time. I was more impressionable back then than today.

[no pun intended]

Wilt Chamberlain.

[andgar923]

Not to diminish or dismiss the players before the 80s, but I have never seen any of their highlights and thought "WOW". Simply because what they did evolved as time went on. I was also too young in most cases to truly appreciate what they were doing in their era 'at that moment'. Sure, as I matured I gained a new respect and appreciation, but never did I have the same reaction as the following.

Here are players that I did see that made me take a second look and go "oh shit!". Some may not have turned out to be great players, but at the moment they had that quality that made you take notice.

Bird: What made me appreciate him was his IQ. And it wasn't so much that I was saying "wow" or "Oh shit", but I thought to myself…. that shit was a very simple play, so why didn't anybody else stop it or think of it first?

Magic: Explanation not needed

MJ: I was a Magic fan, I was a Lakers fan. Until I saw an MJ clip. He was Dr J, he was Connie, he was Ice Man all in one and then some.

Ronnie Fields: One of the first cats that I can remember vividly seeing at his height throw down like a big man. He didn't appear to be 6'4 the way he played over the rim. He had handles, speed, power, jumping ability.

Shaq: Dat Power mixed with finesse

Nick Van Exel: yeah, there's been guys with crazy handles and crossovers. But nobody up to that point 'danced' with the ball. He played with a rhythm that was different than everybody else, almost unguardable one on one.

Tayshaun Prince: This was a high school game Lynwood (my alma mater) vs cross town rival Dominguez. Here he was on the court at 6'8 (although he appeared much much taller in person) getting a damn everything imaginable double double. He had over 10 blocks, 10 assists, 10 steals, over 40 points and he was doing it with ease. Like he was playing vs lil boys, and our school wasn't no chumps either. Yet he was obliterating everybody, he had everybody on our school going crazy as if we were in his home.

Bron: I wasn't super impressed with his athleticism, we've seen players with his size and athleticism before. It was his court vision and playmaking that made me take a second look. It was his high school televised game on ESPN that made me say "dude can be the best NBA player in 3-4 years"

JKidd at Cal: I don't think I remember a player create fast breaks out of nothing, I can't remember a player run the court as fast and find open men as fast since Magic. He used to kill in college, just playing 100 mph while everybody played at 50 mph.

JDub: don't front, the first time you saw Jayson Williams your eyes opened and your jaw dropped. Why? because he was WHITE.



No VC for me. Why? we've seen players that could jump before, his game wasn't extraordinary.

[TheBrewer]

AI
Shaq
Kobe
Reggie