Top 10 Great Players in TERRIBLE Sports Teams
#10: Joe Thomas
Cleveland Browns
In eleven seasons in the NFL, Joe Thomas made ten Pro Bowls, six first-team All-Pro selections, and two second-team All-Pro selections. By the time he retired, he was regarded as one of the greatest offensive linemen in NFL history. But here’s the catch, he spent all of that time with a Cleveland Browns team that never once made the playoffs during his playing career. Thomas was a consistent bright spot in a consistently disappointing team, and the fact that he never made a single post-season appearance in all that time is truly shocking.
#9: Antonio Di Natale
Udinese
There is something to be said for the loyalty of Antonio Di Natale. In a sport where money is becoming more and more of a prevalent factor, Di Natale chose to spend the majority of his career at Udinese - a middling Serie A team. During his 385-game stint with the team, he scored a whopping 191 goals, and even managed to score 11 for the Italian national team during an especially strong period for them. But despite the lucrative offers and opportunities that came his way, Di Natale spent the last 12 years of his playing career at Udinese, showing individual brilliance, but never finding it with his team as a cohesive unit.
#8: Kevin Love
Minnesota Timberwolves
One great player usually isn’t enough to drive a low-level team to the playoffs in the NBA. That was a lesson that Kevin Love had to learn the hard way during his time with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Don’t get us wrong, Love himself was a beast during this period, posting the type of stats that made him one of the best forwards in the entire league. Prior to his run of success with the LeBron-led Cavaliers, Love was basically carrying this franchise on the stat-sheet, and he never did manage to get them into a playoff spot. The sad part? He probably could’ve been contending for championships under different circumstances.
#7: Ernie Banks
Chicago Cubs
Ernie Banks had a folky enthusiasm that made him one of the most cheerful and likeable stars of his era. But here’s the issue, his beloved Cubs were struggling through a real tough patch during the 19 seasons he spent with them. By the time he retired, Banks had earned the right to call himself one of the greatest players of all-time. But he never once got to show those skills in the post-season. A truly great ambassador for the sport, a generational athlete, and a guy who was doomed to spend his career with a team that was going nowhere.
#6: Mike Trout
Los Angeles Angels
We could have quite easily gone for Shohei Ohtani with this pick, but Mike Trout is the real stand-out for this list. We could sit here and talk about his insane accomplishments or how he has been regarded as the single best player in baseball for large portions of his career. But despite sticking it out with the Los Angeles Angels after signing an insane 12-year $426 million contract, his individual success has not been replicated by the team as a whole. Just one playoff appearance since 2011, which they lost, has left many people wondering whether this all-time great is actually only being allowed to use a fraction of his greatness.
#5: Calvin Johnson
Detroit Lions
On the long list of NFL players who have been let down by sub-standard franchises, Calvin Johnson basically had his potential squandered by the Detroit Lions. Two playoff appearances in nine seasons is just not the type of return that any elite player should put up with. And for the aptly-named Megatron, his drive to compete slowly whittled away, until he eventually retired from the sport at the young age of 30. Johnson was, in some ways, the perfect wide receiver. Tall, fast, powerful, and great with his hands, it’s a real shame that he never fully got to show us what he was capable of.
#4: Elton Brand
Chicago Bulls & Los Angeles Clippers
Timing is everything in the world of sports, and for Elton Brand, joining up with the Chicago Bulls directly after the Michael Jordan era was a real shame. They were a franchise who were struggling for momentum and identity, even though Brand himself was at times spectacular. He spent two impressive seasons with the struggling Bulls before getting traded to the L.A. Clippers. But once again, this was another franchise who were being sorely mismanaged. Instead of competing for top honors in the playoffs, Brand was a stand-out member of a pretty mid-level pair of teams.
#3: Matt Le Tissier
Southampton
Matt Le Tissier well and truly came out of nowhere in the late ‘80s and into the ‘90s, boasting the stylish approach to the beautiful game that made him a huge hit with the fans. He spent his entire career with Southampton, a middling team who were never too far from a relegation battle. Called the most gifted English player of his generation, Le Tissier was a technical master who never truly showed it on the biggest possible stages. Sure, the fact that he was a one-club man was admirable, but staying at Southampton ensured that he would never be a contender for any major titles in the game.
#2: Barry Sanders
Detroit Lions
Barry Sanders was a truly electric player in his prime, one of the most impressive running backs to ever do it. But despite his clear world-class talent, he stuck with a very mediocre Detroit Lions team for far too long. The lack of quality support really started to show in his output. In other words, Sanders was carrying this franchise on his back for pretty much his whole career. But when he retired suddenly at the age of just 31, it came as a major shock to the sporting world. His career was legendary, and the Lions retired his No. 20 jersey in 2004. Unfortunately, we can’t help but wonder just how great he could have been under a different team’s banner.
#1: Babe Ruth
Boston Braves
Time has a way of catching up to even the greatest of players. No athlete in baseball commanded the same level of respect and awe as Babe Ruth did in his prime. However, by the time he left the New York Yankees, he was a shadow of his former self. But nothing could’ve prepared him for just how bad his next team would be. Joining the Boston Braves turned out to be the final nail in his career’s coffin. The year was 1935, Babe’s last in the pro-ranks. The Braves would compile an abysmal record of 38–115 - one of the worst in MLB history. It makes you wonder just how much even a peak Babe Ruth could really help them.
But what truly great player do you think stood out in a pretty sub-par team? Let us know in the comments!