7 Great NBA Players That Missed Their Rookie Year

1. Kyrie Irving

While Kyrie endured his injury at Duke prior to entering the NBA, he is still a great example of an athlete that was able to make a comeback after suffering a severe injury early in their career.

Kyrie Irving suffered a ligament injury to his right big toe that had him sideline for the rest of the regular season with Duke. Fortunately, Kyrie was able to make his return during the first round of the NCAA tournament against Hampton.

Kyrie was later selected first overall in the 2011 NBA draft to the Cleveland Cavaliers.