H.O.F. Watch – Mark Price
When we started this Hall of Fame Watch series, the idea was to look at active NBA stars and see who had the necessary H.O.F. credentials. Naturally, though, the list of active players with arguable resumes couldn’t go on forever. So now we’re going in another direction: looking at the retired players who either haven’t been voted in or aren’t yet eligible for induction. Today’s candidate: Mark Price.
MARK PRICE (12 yrs., Cavaliers/Bullets/Warriors/Magic)
15.2 points, 6.7 assists, 1.2 steals per game
Why: Looking at Price’s career highlight reel, it’s tough to argue that his skills aren’t on par with Hall of Fame shoo-in Steve Nash — and in some facets of the game, Price is arguably better. One such facet: shooting. Statistically, Price is the greatest free throw shooter in NBA history, knocking down 90.4% of his attempts from the charity stripe over his career, and his 40.2% three-point clip puts him in the League’s all-time Top 20. Six qualifying players in NBA history have finished a single season shooting at least 50% from the field, 40% beyond the arc and 90% at the line: Larry Bird (twice), Reggie Miller, Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Kerr and Mark Price. And Price won the All-Star Weekend three-point shootout twice. He wasn’t just a shooter, though — Price ranks 49th all-time in assists and finished in the League’s Top 10 in assists in a season five times. Price made four All-Star Games and was a four-time All-NBA pick, including a first team selection in ’93. Internationally, he won a World Championship gold medal with Team USA in ’94, leading that squad in steals during the tournament, finishing second in assists to Kevin Johnson, and second in three-pointers made to Reggie Miller.
Why not: Around the time he hit 30 years old, injuries became a major problem for Price — he missed 140 of a possible 328 games (42 percent) in the final four seasons of his career. And before that, Price missed most of the ’90-91 season after blowing out his knee. Despite playing on some Cleveland teams that had adequate talent, Price only made one notable playoff run; taking the Cavs to the ’92 Eastern Conference Finals, where they would lose in six games to the eventual champion Chicago Bulls. (Price made seven postseason appearances in his career, all with Cleveland, and five of those playoff runs were ended at the hands of the Bulls — including ’94, when Michael Jordan was in the middle of his first retirement.)
Our call: OUT
The H.O.F. Watch archive
12/31 – Shawn Kemp
12/28 – Tim Hardaway
12/17 – Dennis Rodman
12/10 – Mitch Richmond
12/7 – Rasheed Wallace
12/6 – Michael Redd
12/5 – “Too Early”
12/3 – Bruce Bowen
11/30 – Dikembe Mutombo
11/29 – Ron Artest
11/28 – Pau Gasol
11/27 – Kevin Garnett
11/26 – Manu Ginobili
11/21 – Amare Stoudemire
11/20 – Rip Hamilton
11/19 – Baron Davis
11/16 – Shaquille O’Neal
11/15 – Steve Francis
11/14 – Ben Wallace
11/13 – Sam Cassell
11/12 – LeBron James
11/9 – Tim Duncan
11/8 – Steve Nash
11/7 – Yao Ming
11/6 – Gilbert Arenas
11/5 – Robert Horry
11/2 – Kobe Bryant
11/1 – Grant Hill
10/31 – Dirk Nowitzki
10/30 – Tony Parker
10/29 – Elton Brand
10/26 – Carmelo Anthony
10/25 – Vince Carter
10/24 – Penny Hardaway
10/23 – Alonzo Mourning
10/22 – Allen Iverson
10/19 – Dwyane Wade
10/18 – Chauncey Billups
10/17 – Stephon Marbury
10/16 – Jason Kidd
10/15 – Shawn Marion
10/12 – Ray Allen
10/11 – Chris Bosh
10/10 – Chris Webber
10/9 – Paul Pierce
10/5 – Jermaine O’Neal
10/4 – Gary Payton
10/3 – Tracy McGrady
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January 1st, 2008 at 1:27 pm
rob stewart says:
The Price is Nice
January 1st, 2008 at 1:36 pm
kobeef says:
That is the first highlight vid i’ve seen put to 80′s rock. It was a fit.
Price is a poor man’s Steve Nash.
January 1st, 2008 at 3:39 pm
BustJlaze says:
That was the first highlight reel where one of the highlights was the dude TAKING A CHARGE. I stopped it right there.
January 1st, 2008 at 4:06 pm
absured says:
Mark Price aka The Greatest White Dunker of ALL TIME.
January 1st, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Kyle aka "The Air Down There" says:
Mark Price was the real deal. Another cat that got slowed by injuries. He could shoot the hell outta the rock and his handles were alright too.
January 1st, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Gregg says:
He’s in.
Price is the guy that invented “Splitting the double team”. Now you see it all over the place. Honestly I give credit to guys like Price who place subtle drops of knowledge on the court for those to follow. Just like Tim Haradaway with his “Crossover dribble”.
It’s hard to imagine how great he would be with out the injuries but he was a force with Lohaus and Daughtery. Too bad his teams had MJ in his way.
January 1st, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Bank says:
OBV in, Tim out.
January 1st, 2008 at 7:17 pm
Gregg says:
my bad. not Lohaus, I mean Larry Nance.
January 1st, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Logan says:
He’s got to be in…
Steve Nash’s career numbers (14.1 ppg, 7.7 ast, .8 stl) are right there with Price…. or should I say that Price’s numbers are right there with Nash.
Either way you look at it, Price was there first and set the way. PLUS, injuries slowed him down. No telling what he could have done… course that could be said of a lot of NBA players.
In.
January 1st, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Coldchain says:
Yeah but Nash has those two MVP’s that will get him in. And Price didn’t start getting hurt until he was 30. He’d already had his prime.
January 2nd, 2008 at 3:35 am
the_don_mega says:
i dunno…
i think if steve is in… Mark Price should be too…
we must not forget he played in a different era than steve nash…
if Stevie was playing then, i doubt he’d get the same numbers he’s getting now…
the D was tougher and the rules were more fit for half court teamsmlike the ewing led knicks…
if we put an in his prime Mark Price today, there’d be no doubt he’d be putting up numbers better than Nash…
i ain’t a Nash basher or anythin, i do like the guy and everythin’, but all i’m tryin’ to say is that though he’s a helluva player, he’s more of a product of today’s gameplay…
more of like being in the right place at the right time…
to make it more simple…
Richmond,Kemp,Tim Hardaway,Worm, and most of better players from the early to mid 90′s (in their prime) would be better than most “stars” we have now
simply put, if we take these new breed of stars back in the day, im sure there’d be just a handful that can survive…
January 2nd, 2008 at 9:31 am
Marcel says:
First off, Mark had an underrated career. As a Georgia Tech fan, I can tell you that he was the best point guard to ever play there (yes, I’m aware of Kenny Anderson and Marbury). He was also one of the best guards to ever play in the ACC. Talk to some old heads who’ve covered college ball during the 80′s if you need proof. Everyone has harped on the NBA career, so I need to say no more.
He may not be a hall of famer, but if you add his college career and pro time, he’s not as a dismissal as many people may think.
January 2nd, 2008 at 2:41 pm
sans says:
Marcel, word. I don’t know if he’s better than CP3 though. Mark Price had every kid I know hustling, splitting defenders, doing pass fakes, and trying to drain jumper-after-jumper. Man, that youtube segment was dope. Obviously I grew up in Cleveland, but the Cavs were the Kings to the early 90s Bulls. And Mark Price was way better than Bibby, Webber, or Peja in his prime. But, please Dime, do not do one on Brad Daugherty.
January 2nd, 2008 at 2:48 pm
sans says:
Also, they ran up against the Pistons when they were the team to beat multiple times in the playoffs. It’s tough coming from a stacked division where the best team wins the chip 5 years running.
January 2nd, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Myrie says:
OUT.
Zero athletic ability. Can any of you remember Mark Price hitting a big shot? Really…..think…EVER?
Decent player; I enjoyed watching him. But HOF?…I don’t think so.
Should we put players in for splitting double teams on pick-n-roll traps? Are you for real?
As for GTech, Price was good, but Travis Best had the best career as a point at GT. Even Kenny Anderson collegiate numbers are better than Price’s.
I like Price. I ain’t hating. But he would go in the Hall based on what?….winning the 3pt shootout at allstar weekend? Dropping 20pts in the ’94 allstar game?
Has he ever led his team to playoff greatness/success?
Good ball player, but not Hall worthy.
January 2nd, 2008 at 6:36 pm
doc says:
nice yes HOF no
January 4th, 2008 at 4:50 pm
JayTea says:
How bout’ a watch on Ron Harper?
January 7th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Sacto J says:
I have to agree with most. Decent stats, decent game, decent career, but not very HOF worthy. Then there’s the whole thing where he played in a not so notable market (sorry, going back to a Richmond argument for a second, my bad.) I remember those teams from the 80′s, which MJ repeatedly destroyed, both mentally and physically (watch Ehlo fall to the ground in fear and dejection as MJ hits a game winner over his head…I hate MJ….)Anyway, the Cavs had a good decade with those price, Ehlo, Nance, Daugherty teams, but were just a bit too weak for a rough & tough division. Sorry, but Price will be OUT…..
May 8th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
Bizil says:
Even though Mark Price was a multiple time All-star in the 80′s I gotta say no. He didn’t have a lot of great years. It was said earlier that when he hit 30 that’s when the injuries started piling up. I think that right there is what is gonna cost him. Most of the great ones are still in their prime when they are 30. Nash is 32 or 33 and still in his prime. Kidd even though he isn’t as athletic is still one of the top 3 or 4 point guards in the league at 34. AI at 32 is still in his prime and looks like he hasn’t lost a step. The point is if Price would have had about 3-4 more prime seasons I think he would be in. Think about this: In 1990 Magic, Isiah, and Stockton were the top point guards in the league. It was said at the time that KJ, Timmy Hardaway, and Price were the next in line for greatness. It’s sad that injuries took all three out of the Hall of Fame. All players eventually will fade usually it’s just a matter of how soon it will happen. Take GP for example. Sure he faded a lot from his prime but the man was like 37 years old. At 35 he was still puttin up 20 pts., 8ast, and playing great defense. So GP was already a lock for the Hall. His longevity was legendary and he was a top 5 point guard in the league for 11 or 12 years.