Top 10 Sports Busts

Considered the next Pele, Freddy Adu was supposed to be the guy to finally lead the United States to a World Cup trophy. He signed a professional contract at just 14 years old and captained the United States team that beat Brazil and Uruguay at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. Due to his age and inexperience, however, Adu found it difficult to find playing time on international clubs, and his play began to waver. His lack of mental toughness was blamed for his failure, but it’s likely really a case of a young man with too much pressure on his shoulders.

The NHL has had its fair share of busts over the years, including Patrik Stefan, the former #1 draft pick by the Atlanta Thrashers. We are going with Alexandre Daigle, however, who was also drafted 1st overall. Ottawa was accused of tanking during the 1992-93 season so they would be able to draft this “can’t miss” prospect. He rewarded them with 20 goals in his rookie season, but was criticized in the following years for his lack of effort. Reports of drug use didn’t help, nor did making a bomb joke on an airplane. He was out of hockey by the age of 25.

Drafted by Green Bay in the first round after Troy Aikman and before Barry Sanders, Tony Mandarich was called the best offensive line prospect ever by Sports Illustrated in 1989. Just three years later, “The Incredible Bulk” became “The NFL’s Incredible Bust.” The Canadian lineman was an absolute beast at the NFL Combine, bench-pressing 225 pounds an unbelievable 39 times. He missed training camp due to a holdout, however, and reports began to surface that he had attitude problems. On top of that, many believed that Mandarich was on steroids – something he admitted to in an interview in 2008.

During his junior year at Michigan State, Charles Rogers put up over 1,300 receiving yards and scored 13 touchdowns, with analysts comparing him to Randy Moss. The Detroit Lions drafted him with the second overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft and handed him a huge contract. His rookie year started off okay, but a broken clavicle in practice ended his season. Things quickly snowballed from there, as Rogers struggled with substance abuse and broke his clavicle a second time the following year. He was out of football in 2006, finishing his career with just 36 catches in 15 career games.

As a three-year starter at Louisiana State University, JaMarcus Russell won 21 games and finished his college career with an impressive victory over Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl where he took home the MVP award. With his size and arm strength, he was selected by Oakland as the first overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. That would be the peak of his career, however. Russell failed to show the dedication that it takes to play quarterback, gaining a significant amount of weight and getting in trouble off the field. He finished his career with just 7 wins and a terrible 65.2 quarterback rating.

Another failed wunderkind to make our list, Nii Lamptey became a superstar in Ghana and was labeled the Ghanaian Pele - by Pele himself. He put on a show at the 1991 FIFA U-17 World Championship, winning best player of the tournament after scoring four goals. Lamptey struggled to find consistent playing time at the club level, however, and bounced around from club to club. In the 1996 African Cup of Nations semi-final game against South Africa, Lamptey was sent off in a 3-0 loss. He wouldn’t play another game for Ghana after 1996.

The 7 ft tall Serbian’s career got off to a great start. In 2003, he was drafted one spot behind LeBron James by the Detroit Pistons, who would win the NBA Championship the following year. Milicic failed to improve his game, however, and his playing time dwindled. Of course, his lack of playing time could be the reason why his skills failed to develop. The Pistons ultimately traded him during the 2006 season. What makes this bust sting even more is that the three players drafted after Milicic were Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade.

From a first-round pick to prison, Lawrence Phillips was quite the sight on the football field in college, leading Nebraska to back-to-back National Championships in the early ‘90s. Phillips was constantly in trouble off the field, however, including being suspended for assaulting his ex-girlfriend. Several NFL teams passed on him in the draft due to his character issues, but the Rams selected him 6th overall. Despite this, Phillips continued to get in trouble and his on-field play deteriorated. After finishing his playing career in the Canadian Football League, Phillips died in 2016 while serving a 32-year prison sentence and awaiting trial on first-degree murder charges.

Be careful who you give 15-year contracts to – especially in hockey. DiPietro was drafted first overall in 2000 by the New York Islanders, who traded Roberto Luongo to open up a spot. Big mistake. DiPietro’s early career was plagued with inconsistency, but for some bizarre reason the Islanders gave him a 15-year, $67.5 million contract in 2006. Then came the injury bug. Concussions ended his year in 2007, while multiple knee surgeries caused him to miss almost the entire 2008-09 season. After signing his contract, DiPietro played just 175 games in 7 years, meaning he made a little over 385 thousand dollars per game.

Before we unveil our number one pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

Maurice Clarett
Kwame Brown
Pavel Brendl
David Carr

It’s hard to believe that before the 1998 NFL Draft, there was a serious debate about whether Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf should be selected first overall. The Colts ended up choosing Manning, leaving the Chargers with Leaf. He struggled mightily in his rookie season and in the media blamed his teammates for his poor play. As you can imagine, he quickly developed a reputation for a bad work ethic; he even had to be restrained when a fan heckled him during training camp. The Chargers released Leaf in 2001 after finishing 1-15. He retired in 2002, finishing his career with 36 interceptions in just 25 games, having squandered what talent he did once have.

Do you agree with our list? Who do you think is the biggest sports bust? For more great Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.