Shaun Livingston: Success stories cut short - NBA Special Report (Part-1)
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the biggest basketball league in the world and every year talented players begin their professional basketball careers from this platform. Through the course of history, many players
like Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Shaquille O’ Neal bewitched one and all and went on to retire their fairy tale careers. However, there have been several players in the league, who were destined for glory, but their careers
were cut short abruptly. Some suffered constant injuries; some went down due to their own destructive behaviours and so on.
Keeping the recent retirement of Chinese basketball legend in perspective, we have compiled a list of the most promising stars, who left NBA when they were right at their peak.
1- Shaun Livingston
Shaun Livingston made his way into the league in 2004 when he was selected by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2004 NBA draft as the 4th overall pick. His talent was not hidden from basketball experts and he was considered
as the most promising young player in the Clippers’ roster.
However, after one season of success, calamity struck. Livingston endured a knee injury and that eventually snatched many great opportunities from him.
Livingston’s injury took place in his second season. On February 26, 2007 he went for a layup in match against the Charlotte Bobcats. Livingston managed to make the shot, but came down hard on the floor. He twisted his leg and
injured his knee from various parts. His left kneecap was dislocated along with many other complications and he never recovered fully. This was the major setback for the 25 years old Livingston who lost his early thrust from this very injury.
Although he came back in 2008, after doctors cleared him to play basketball once again, but he could not find a decent contract with any NBA team. Eventually he signed a two year deal with the Miami Heat in 2008, but could not
impress them. Consequently, he was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies also waived him off and Livingston ended up at the NBA D-league franchise Tulsa 66ers. He only played for three weeks with the 66ers and was then brought in by Oklahoma City Thunder in 2009. His contract was for multiple
years, but the Thunder also released him in December 2009. In the days that followed, Livingston signed a 10 day contract with the Washington Wizards and stayed with them for the remainder of 2009-2010 season.
He moved to the Charlotte Bobcats the very next season but was again traded to Milwaukee Bucks in a three way deal in 2011.
Shaun Livingston was no doubt a very talented player, but his consistent injuries problem cut short his career. He never found a good contract with any NBA teams. In the past seven years, Livingston travelled from one franchise
to another, wondering what could have been.
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