The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is the crowning honor for NBA players, and even the selection of the first Asian player like Yao Ming has been controversial. However, in the history of the NBA, there is a player who only played three seasons in the NBA and did not win even a single playoff victory, but was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame! If he were still alive, today would be his 84th birthday.

Today, 19 years later, Maurice Stokes came to the world, and no one would have thought that he would become an indissoluble bond with basketball and become a Hall of Famer, let alone that he would die because of basketball. In the 1955 NBA Draft, Stokes was drafted by the Rochester Royals (the predecessor of the current Kings) as the top pick, which started his career and set him on a path of no return.

Maurice Stokes is 01 meters tall but is comfortable on the inside. In his rookie season, he averaged 16.8 points, 16 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game in 67 regular season games, and was the player with the most rebounds per game in the NBA that season, ranking 10th in the league in points per game and 8th in assists per game. In addition, Stokes was named to the All-NBA Second Team during his rookie season, scoring 10 points and 16 rebounds in 0 minutes off the bench in the All-Star Game. You know, super rookies like Karl Anthony Towns and Joel Embiid didn't even make the All-Star Game in their rookie season, let alone make the All-Star team.

While Stokes has been able to play dominantly since his rookie season, his Royals (the predecessor of the current Kings) know that Stokes has only made the playoffs in his third season. And Stokes' 1 point, 15 rebounds and assists in the first playoff game of his NBA career against the Pistons, no one would have thought that this would be the swan song of this genius's NBA career.

In the final game of the third season of Stokes' NBA career, on January 1, 1958, the Royals challenged the Lakers away, and Stokes scored four points and 19 rebounds, both game-high, leading the Royals to a 96-89 victory over the Lakers. No one could have imagined that such a regular-season finale would become the beginning of a disaster for Stokes' NBA career. He collided with a Lakers player during a layup during a game and hit his head after falling and immediately fell unconscious. But Stokes soon woke up and got back into the game. No one would have imagined that three days later, after the first game of the playoffs, Stokes suddenly fell ill on the plane back to Cincinnati from Detroit, and immediately after getting off the plane, he went to the hospital, only to have a severe brain damage and a central nervous system damage that stemmed from hitting his head after that collision. Although Stokes survived, he was largely paralyzed and died a year later at the age of seven.

Morris Stokes only played one season in the NBA, played only one playoff game and lost, didn't have an MVP trophy and wasn't named to the All-NBA First Team, such a player doesn't seem to qualify for the Hall of Fame, but he's just a genius ruined by a court-of-court injury, as his teammate Jack Tweyman said, "He's more physical than Jordan, he's as versatile as Magic, and could be one of the five best players in NBA fashion!" "Now that the NBA has strict limits on player concussions, we don't want the tragedy of Stokes to happen again.

198CM TALL, SHOOTING GUARD, NO. 1 PICK, 70 POINTS, YOUNG AND FAMOUS. These labels are always reminiscent of Kobe Bryant, who has been retired for more than two years. The 18-year-old Devin Booker, as soon as he entered the league, was named Kobe's successor, which is a great honor for young players, and Booker is a loyal Kobe fan like other players of this generation. Chasing Kobe's shadow, or even surpassing Kobe, is his relentless goal.

On May 5, 017, Devin Booker scored 70 points against the Boston Celtics, becoming the youngest Mr. 70 points, but in the end, he fell too far behind the score and failed to complete the comeback. The news of the 70-point score immediately detonated fans all over the world. Xiaobian remembers that my friends brushed Booker's poster in the circle of friends, and Booker's scoring record.

The first thing a friend says is, "Hey! Did you watch the morning game? Booker is so powerful, he scored 70 points! Day 2: Hey! Did you watch yesterday's game? Devin Booker scored 70 points! Day 3: Hey! Did you watch the game the day before yesterday? That guard of the Suns got 70 minutes, alas! It wasn't until a few weeks later that one of my female classmates told me: I heard that Kobe Bryant scored another 70 points a few days ago, alas! It's amazing! I silently lowered my proud fat head... Cover your mouth and snicker: yes, yes, the boss is the best...

It can be seen that Devin Booker's influence can affect us on the other side of the ocean, and let the world remember this guard with explosive scoring ability. Even some friends who don't watch the ball... This No. 1 pick has so much in common with Kobe Bryant.

I believe that there are also this kind of fans around you, and when you see people, you will say: Booker, no, "data brush", there is no affirmative comparison with the boss, and there will be no achievements in the future. "Data brush", I think this term is a denigration of athletes who work the field. We always say that we don't give up and don't give up, why is a young man who is only 0 years old desperately scoring and defending for victory, and he is indeed so ruthlessly attacked. You can dislike him, but you can't slander or doubt his professionalism.

In the offseason, the Phoenix Suns signed Devin Booker to a five-year, 158 million contract with a maximum salary of 5 years. You know, Devin Booker is only 1 year old this year, and there is still a lot of potential to be tapped. For example, defense, compared to Booker's offense, his defense is simply better than nothing. As we all know, Booker's physical talent is relatively average, his arm span is not good, and his hand shape is not large, although his defensive attitude is relatively positive, but his innate physical fitness limits him. Offensively, we played impeccable against him, and on the defensive end, Booker needs to improve his defensive skills, learn from Kobe Bryant, and study more of the opponent's videos. Through acquired learning, you can become a top superstar like Kobe, who is good at scoring and defending.

In 018, the Suns held the No. 1 pick and signed Ayton after repeated trade-offs. It is not difficult to understand that the Suns' team building in the next 5-8 years will revolve around Booker and Ayton. Historically, there have been many twin stars in and out of the NBA league, such as the OK combination, the combination of Stockton and Ma Long, and the Yao Mai combination, all of which have achieved varying degrees of success. Thinking about it, the most similar is the OK combination of Kobe Bryant and O'Neal, and the combination of a scoring guard and an interior giant is always expected.

In the 018-019 season, the debut of the "AB" combination, I believe it will become a beautiful landscape in the post-Kobe era. Blocking and dismantling to cover Booker's three-point shot, blocking and dismantling Ayton's violent dunk to end the offense, Booker held the ball at the top of the circle and threw it casually, Ayton dodged the two and won the air relay. These images flashed over and over again in the editor's mind.

"Comparable to Mamba", I believe that you will not necessarily be satisfied with this, I hope you can surpass yourself and surpass your dreams to be yourself!

Can Booker, who works so hard, still be called a "data brush"? (To be continued)