20 NBA Hall-of-Fame careers that were cut short by injury

NBA Hall-of-Fame career cut short: Amar’e Stoudemire

One of the most influential teams of the past few decades are the Mike D’Antoni Phoenix Suns, whose “Seven second or less” offensive style revolutionized how NBA offenses were constructed. Steve Nash was the conductor and the two-time MVP, and Shawn Marion was the do-it-all defender who unlocked the team’s versatility, but the finisher was Amar’e Stoudemire.

Perhaps another big man could have put the same pressure on defenses as Stoudemire did, and he doesn’t deserve full credit for his statistics given how excellent of a setup man Nash was, but it’s hard not to be impressed with how Stoudemire filled up a box score.

Drafted directly out of high school by the Phoenix Suns, Stoudemire won Rookie of the Year honors and never look back. By his second season, he was averaging 20.6 points and 9 rebounds, and in his third, he put up 26 points per game and made his first All-Star team.

The next season injuries struck, and Stoudemire played in just three games before microfracture surgery on his knees ended his season. He made a full recovery, coming back to make five consecutive All-Star appearances and five total All-NBA nods. Perhaps most impressive was his first season in New York in 2010-11, when he averaged 25.3 points without Nash.

That would be his last great season, as injuries began to crop back up. Back, hand and knee injuries held him out of many games and held him back in many others, and when he did play he lacked his previous scoring burst. Stoudemire never again made another All-Star Game and soon lost his starting job, bouncing around the league at the end of his career.

Without those injuries, Stoudemire’s resume is likely that much more impressive. If he doesn’t miss the 2005-06 season the Suns had a shot at finally breaking through to the NBA Finals, and Stoudemire’s counting stats could have reached an undeniable place if it didn’t fizzle out so quickly.