Ralph Sampson is one of the greatest college players of all time, a three-time AP NCAA player of the year. A nearly unstoppable big man. And that certainly is part of the reason he is being inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Friday.
But he had a pretty good NBA career as well — he took maybe the greatest shot in Rockets history, he was a four-time All-Star who averaged 15,4 points and 8.8 rebounds a game. And look at the highlights above — this was a mobile and skilled big man who could have played in any era.
Just something to think back on when you see him get enshrined as well this weekend.
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- cosanostra71 - Sep 4, 2012 at 11:14 PM
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it really is incredible how fast and agile Sampson was… at 7’4″! But like Yao Ming- human beings just really aren’t meant to be that big so they are fragile at that size. It’s unfortunate, Sampson had the potential to be truly dominant, just like Yao.
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- fordmandalay - Sep 5, 2012 at 12:04 AM
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One of the greats from the Age of The Big Men! Boy do I miss real NBA centers.
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- eventhorizon04 - Sep 5, 2012 at 1:39 AM
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Very skilled, very agile. He averaged 20.7 points and 10.9 rebounds for his first three seasons with the Houston Rockets – imagine if he stayed healthy and stuck with Olajuwon for the rest of his career?
That’s a potential Tim Duncan/David Robinson front-court combination derailed by injuries.
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- rjlink1 - Sep 5, 2012 at 8:39 AM
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Based on the NCAA years, yes. Based on the NBA career, clearly no. A lot like Bill Walton in that regard. But it’s OK to judge earlier centers by peak and not longevity. Today’s centers, with only one year of NCAA, better have 6-7 dominant NBA seasons minimum.
