Kentucky basketball: 5 Wildcats who didn’t live up to the NBA hype

1. Kentucky basketball NBA busts: Sam Bowie

Any Kentucky basketball fan with a thorough knowledge of the Wildcats’ history shouldn’t be shocked that Sam Bowie is at the top of this list. Thoroughly regarded as one of the worst draft picks in NBA history, Bowie’s story is certainly an interesting one.

As a center for the Wildcats, Bowie made his mark at Kentucky, earning second-team All-America status in 1981 and 1984. Bowie was a productive player as well, averaging 13.3 points per game and 8.8 rebounds a night in his Wildcats’ career.

The NBA was a big man’s league in 1984 and the Portland Trail Blazers were hoping to land a franchise-caliber center. Portland lost a coin toss to the Houston Rockets, who got the first pick and used it to draft Hakeem Olajuwon, leaving the Trail Blazers with Bowie as a consolation prize.

The problem for Bowie was injuries, which wrecked his career and kept him from reaching his true potential. Bowie was a moderately productive player when he was able to take the floor, but he was a shell of himself after suffering tibia fractures in both legs over a two-year span.

It certainly doesn’t help Bowie’s cause that the Chicago Bulls took Michael Jordan immediately after him. Jordan went on to become the greatest basketball player who ever lived while Bowie became a punch line, cementing his status at the top of this list of Wildcats who failed to live up to the hype as NBA players.

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