Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is another list of potential comebacks that would’ve been fun to play with in video games.

As I’ve taken a few more trips around the sun, I’ve become increasingly bothered by the tendency for veterans to get pushed out of the league. Yes, young players who are the future need their opportunities, and it feels like we’re seeing more All-Stars stick around beyond their fifteenth season, but over the years, quite a few veterans have seemingly been ushered out of the NBA while they were still productive. Other times of course, injuries unfortunately cut their careers short, robbing them of the chance to settle into a veteran mentor role while still having the opportunity to contribute.

Those are the times when we hope to see comebacks, if only so a former star can go out in style rather than fade away unceremoniously. We’ve seen that happen, but not every player who leaves the league too soon gets a chance to return and write a better final chapter. Not only is that a shame in real life, but it sadly puts the kibosh on what could be a fun scenario to play with in video games as well. I’ve already posted two previous articles discussing comebacks that would’ve been fun to see in video games, but some of the examples I’m sharing today – particularly the last one – are returns that I really wish had come to pass. Without any further ado, let’s tip things off with…

1. Antoine Walker: A Fairly Young Comeback Attempt (2010)

Injuries are frequently to blame when a player exits the league at a younger age than one might expect, but even a healthy player can lose their spot once they’ve been pigeonholed in a smaller role. I’d suggest that’s what happened with Antoine Walker, who took a backseat to Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal on the Heat in 2006. Walker played all 82 games that year but started only 19 of them, and then moved back into the starting five in the Playoffs, where Miami won their first title. He then settled back into a sixth man role the following year, before a forgotten season in Minnesota and a phantom stint in Memphis marked an early end to his NBA career.

To that point, Toine was around 32 when he played his final official NBA game (he did see action in two preseason contests for the Grizzlies). As such, he was still under 35 when he was looking to make a comeback in 2010 following a stint in Puerto Rico. Walker joined the D-League’s Idaho Stampede, hoping it would be a path back to the NBA. Despite drawing interest from a handful of teams, that never materialised, and Walker retired in 2012. It’s unfortunate, as not only would it have been fun to have him back in the games, but with the changes to the style of play that were looming on the horizon, he likely could’ve stuck around as a stretch four until the mid 2010s.

2. Antonio McDyess: Not Quite Done After All (2012)

When Michael Jordan retired in 1999 – not for the final time, as it turned out – my all-time favourite player was no longer active for me to enjoy watching. Although I had no intention of switching allegiance to another team, it’d be a while before the Bulls would acquire a player who would become my active favourite. Until then, I took an interest in Antonio McDyess. I always enjoyed his game, and at the time, he had quite a promising future. Sadly, knee injuries cut short his prime, but he remained a solid player through to his final season. Unfortunately, he missed out on a ring as he joined both the Pistons and Spurs a little too late, though he came close with Detroit in 2005.

That might be why after retiring in 2011 and sitting out the 2012 campaign, McDyess decided that he still had something left in the tank. It was always going to be a long shot at 38, but he’d remained healthy and productive in his later seasons; something I felt compelled to point out to a Forum member who was clearly far more cynical than me about his prospects! Even though he never “officially” became my favourite NBA player, I did always cheer for McDyess, and would’ve enjoyed seeing him play and be available on the virtual hardwood once again. The 2012 comeback didn’t happen, but I think he could’ve still been effective in limited minutes, and valuable in a mentor role.

3. Richard Hamilton: Open to Offers (2016)

Speaking of former Pistons, McDyess’ teammate from 2004-2009, Richard Hamilton, also considered a comeback in his late 30s. Rip ended his career with the Bulls in 2013, though he didn’t officially retire until February 2015, having sat out the entire 2014 campaign. At the time, a “freak foot injury” sustained the previous October had convinced him to retire, but over a year later, Hamilton was clearly feeling the itch to get back onto the court for one last hurrah…and of course, the opportunity to win one more championship. In July 2016, his agent put out feelers to several teams, and Rip declared he was giving himself thirty days to gauge whether his body was up to it.

Since he’s on a list of players whose comebacks would’ve been fun to play with, it’s hardly a spoiler to say that Hamilton ultimately didn’t return. However, it definitely would’ve been interesting if he had. Never mind whether or not his body could’ve handled the rigours of the NBA season. With the league’s obsession with analytics and three-point shooting, his tremendous midrange game was already being labelled as outdated in 2016. That is underselling the importance of the midrange even in the modern NBA though, not to mention his ability to adapt his shooter’s touch to taking more threes. Rip could’ve been a very intriguing fit on a contender had he returned.

4. Baron Davis: From D-League Back to the NBA (2016)

Like Antoine Walker before him, Baron Davis sought to make a comeback through the D-League after bowing out of the NBA in his early 30s. However, in his case, a devastating knee injury led to his abrupt exit in 2012. During Game 4 of the Knicks’ first round series against the Heat, Davis suffered a partially-torn patellar tendon in his right knee, with complete tears of the ACL and MCL. The gruesome injury was expected to keep him out at least a year, during which time he became a free agent. When Davis finally did return to the court, it was in the Drew League in July 2015. Nevertheless, the two-time All-Star still eyed a return, and a happier end to his career.

Davis signed on to play in the D-League in January 2016, and was acquired by the Delaware 87ers (now the Blue Coats) in March. He showed flashes of the player he once was, even getting up for a dunk in his D-League debut. Davis went on to play six games for the 87ers, but an NBA comeback wasn’t in the cards. Since then, Davis has participated in the Celebrity Game at the All-Star Weekend, and played in the BIG3. While he still had an NBA career to be proud of, it would’ve been fantastic to see him make it all the way back from that terrible knee injury. Such comebacks are few and far between, and he could’ve gone out on his own terms; maybe even with a ring!

5. Ben Gordon: Tailor-Made For Today’s NBA (2017)

While my all-time favourite seasons will always be the Bulls’ championship years, I loved seeing their rise out of the NBA basement in the mid 2000s. Those young Bulls teams obviously didn’t reach the heights of the Jordan Era, but they were fun to cheer for. In Ben Gordon (“rhymes with Jordan”), I found a new favourite player. The 2009 season gave us Bulls fans a tantalising glimpse of the duo that he and Derrick Rose could’ve been, had GarPax not let him go to the Pistons in the offseason. I couldn’t have been more disappointed at the time, though needless to say, the injuries that derailed Rose’s career were the truly heartbreaking misfortune in the years to come.

It wasn’t fun seeing Gordon struggling in Detroit, though. His stints with the Bobcats and Magic were likewise dismal, and then the defending champion Warriors cut him after two preseason games in 2015. Given how tailor-made Gordon was for what the NBA was becoming, it’s crazy that he was just cast aside like that; especially since he was still only in his early 30s! He went to the D-League in 2017, joining the Texas Legends and turning heads as he was still in great shape and a sniper from long range. However, no teams took a chance on him. It’s truly bizarre, and I firmly believe he deserved better. I would’ve loved to see and play out a Ben Gordon comeback!

Do you remember these comebacks that almost happened? Would you have liked to have seen them come to fruition, and play with them in video games? Have your say in the comments, and as always, feel free to take the discussion to the NLSC Forum! That’s all for this week, so thanks for checking in, have a great weekend, and please join me again next Friday for another Five.

The post The Friday Five: 5 Comebacks That Would’ve Been Fun To Play With (Part 3) appeared first on NLSC.