The original King James. He was so smooth and played with the system. One of the most underrated players of all time. He was what Pippen was to Jordan. He will be always overshadowed by Magic. But real NBA fans know how great he really was.
+Paul Eb That kind of shadowing was different... Scottie Pippen actually played better without Jordan and led the Bulls team to 55 wins after Jordan retired, would've made the Finals if it wasn't for a bogus call against him during the 1994 ECSF vs Knicks. I can't say the same without Worthy, he won't be able to carry the Lakers without Magic Johnson.
Magic Johnson You may be right. But on another team without the talent of the Lakers, he probably would have been a bigger star. The Lakers had Magic, Worthy and Kareem. Hard for a guy to stand out with two basketball legends on the team. He was an awesome player is all I'm saying.
Paul Eb He would stand out way more without Kareem I agree, Kareem was useless in the last championship of showtime anyway. Without Magic no, Worthy got a lot of points by leaking out on open break because Magic was the best at rebounding, pushing the ball and finding his teammates in the open break. Magic made Worthy better.
+Magic Johnson Kareem was 41 years old at the time your talking about. As for Worthy, even without the fast break points, he could post and score with the best of them.
Worthy's speed, his first step, his court presence, and his power are not matched by very many in the entire league's history. He fit in perfectly with Magic, and made Magic look even better than he already was. Worthy was a phenom. He was raw brute force and power. He was consistent. He was determined. And like all truly great players, he wanted to win, not just make a paycheck. He is vastly underrated.
Great athlete and relentless competitor. It's crazy how many players are overlooked. I've been studying basketball for 9 years now (I'm 24) I'm still finding greats from the past. The NBA has employed over 3,000 players. That's a lot of talent and names to remember.
Seeing James worthy go up against those great Celtic front court players in Bird and McHale was a great treat for me as a kid growing up watching magic, bird, Jordan, and isiah
Honestly, I don't think there was ever a faster forward than James Worthy. He had the that lightning-quick first step and although basic, his fast-break finishing dunks were breathtaking because of the speed and hang time. Michael Jordan stated that Worthy would be in his starting five if he wanted to field an unbeatable team.
Worthy has the right qualities of a real NBA stud. Strong, quick, tough, can play in a system and a better playoffs contender than any stars that played at this overrated era. And I heard that Lebron the biggest piggy back rider all time, is going to acquire Deron Williams
Bron James is faster, Worthy comes after him. Marques Johnson from the Bucks never gets talked about, but he was very fast for a small forward. Dominique was more quick than fast. 'The Greek Freak' is lightning fast.
So underrated... He was what Klay Thompson is to Stephen Curry and what Scotty Pipen was to Micheal Jordan... Super underrated, he’s in the shadow of Magic Johnson...
Used to love Lawrence Tanter just saying, "WORTHY!!!!!!!" when he'd dunk one in or get layup in the late 80's. Showtime was incredible. You had to be there.
When he was reaching his 30s he had gotten sooo good at the post game. People remember him for him spins and running the floor, but because he knew he would have to adapt more, he added some excellent right box post game. And he could shoot his hook shot left handed which is more amazing. If anyone had it today they would be unstoppable.
Didn't really get to watch him growing up but watching his highlights throughout the years as a Laker fan, you could tell this guy must have been a treat to watch live as a Laker fan. He seemed so consistent and efficient as a scorer. No ego and knew his role on the team... Get buckets!
James Worthy and Eric Dickerson played in Los Angeles at the same time, were quick and fast AF, Strong, lots of endurance, and wore those goggles with style. Hmmmm, distant relatives perhaps?? Lol. Much love to "Big Game" James Worthy. One of my All Time favorite SFs and overall ballers.
This video of Worthy and those like it are great. One of the best finisher of the game. But, they don't show how great of a mid-range jump shooter he was. That 15-18 footer, whether faced up or post-up turnaround, was automatic. He lacked the 3-pointer, but didn't need it. He was unstoppable.
James Worthy was a bad man. You don't get your Lakers jersey retired if you were just "good." He was an all-time great. Silky smooth player that was an absolute killer on the fast break. Great, great player.
@1:34 how to make toast in .1 seconds. I watched as many Lakers games as I could in the 80's, and Worthy always made them fun to watch, dude was just awesome.
When 'Big Game' played well, the Lakers were virtually impossible to defeat! He was the perfect wing-man and finisher on the break! Such fond memories of watching James! Thank you J-dub!
He and Jordan were teammates on the North Carolina championship team.. Worthy was MVP. Worthy was a junior while Jordan was a sophomore.That's why sometime their are similar moves. That team also had Sleepy Floyd at guard. What a college team! How many players now can do a spin move with a left hand dunk in 2 seconds. You don't hardly even see left handed dunks very often now.
+vin russo Sleepy Floyd did not play for UNC. He played for Georgetown and was the guy that accidentally passed the ball to Worthy to seal the championship for Carolina. Wonder why they called him Sleepy? Asleep at the wheel is my guess.
+Paul Eb UNC had Jordan, Worthy and Sam Perkins. Jordan was a freshman, Perkins a sophomore and Worthy Junior. They got Kenny Smith and Brad Daugherty the next year.
+Ogre UNC should have won more National Championship under Dean Smith. All the good players they had. The problem players leaving school early for the NBA.
Ah, those were great times to be a Laker fan. Worthy was a fantastic player. That team could compete with any team ever. Magic, Kareem and Worthy on the same team, talk about a big three.
Ugh, if James Worthy had played in a different era, I think he would be in the conversation for best SF in NBA history. He was already outstanding in his own right, but he was overshadowed by Magic and Kareem on his own team and Larry Bird at his own position. You'd never hear that from him though; dude's as humble as they come.
The Celtics of the 80s had a hell of a time trying to deal w/ Worthy. They had no answer for his speed & quickness . Had Len Bias played for the Celtics....who knows.
yupp I use to never believe that until my uncle sat me down with some OLD UNC tapes worthy was a monster one of my dreams would of been to see him come out of retirement and play with Jordan in Chi or even Washington to see that combo one more time IN the pros for the first time would of been amazing.
@@rodneyman711 Nah bro! Worthy was nice!!!! This highlight real does not do his game justice. He was nasty on the block, and he played D. He was a complete Small foward.
The man deserves respect! He wasn't a Superstar because he didn't put up a show, but he was so regular, a true professional. I respect the superstars, but i respect even more the players that play consistently without being an ''all star'', like Scottie Pippen, John Starks, James Worthy, etc. I'm buying a worthy's jersey, for respect!
