Most Unpopular Raptor of All-Time Bracket: 1st Big Men Region

We’re back with part two of our Most Unpopular Raptor of all-time bracket. If you thought the guard region was underwhelming, I promise this big men region will elicit more hard feelings and hate than the love we saw being shown to those in the guard region. (Polls are still open over there, by the way.)

Throughout the NBA there are numerous teams who have had multiple big men that have been big busts, but the Raps seem especially snake-bit when it comes to those who once patrolled the paint. So much so we, in fact, we had to divide the big men up into two different regions.

Today we tackle Big Men Region 1.

#1 Rafael Araujo vs. #8 Pape Sow

Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Hoffa enters this side of the bracket as the prohibitive favourite to make it to the championship game, due to the utter disappointment of a career he had in purple and white. Rob Babcock (LOL) selected him 8th in the 2004 NBA Draft, ahead of names like JR Smith, Josh Smith, Al Jefferson, Tony Allen, Trevor Ariza, and one spot ahead of now Finals MVP Andre Iguodala.

The BYU Cougar was nothing more than a house cat in his two year career with the Raps, spanning 111 games with 75 starts. Over those two seasons he put up extremely underwhelming averages of 2.9 PPG and 3 RPG and a comical 5.9 PER.

He was eventually traded for fellow bracket member Kris Humphries after claiming he didn’t see the court under Sam Mitchell due to Mitchell’s grudge against Babcock. But can you really blame Sam?

His NBA career ended after 28 games with the Jazz the following season.

Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Araujo’s draft mate in 2004 gets the matchup against him in the first round, and although he wasn’t exactly hated, there was a lot of unfulfilled potential from an athletic standpoint.

Over 76 games in three seasons with Toronto, Sow averaged only 11.6 minutes per game in a completely forgettable career.

The crazy part of this is that none of his D-League success could translate to the NBA game, and as you can see in “Poppin’ my Collar with Pape Sow” he balled out as a Rimrocker:

#2 Alonzo Mourning vs. #7 Eric Montross

Photo by Eliot Schechter/Getty Images

The Alonzo flex in that picture is basically what he did to the entire organization when he failed to report to the team after he had been included in the Vince Carter deal made by Rob Babcock (LOL). [Ed. note: starting to think Babcock would win the “most unpopular Raptor-adjace ever” poll.]

Earlier in that season, Mourning had demanded a trade to a contender, and in an odd twist of fate didn’t see the Raptors roster stocked with studs like Rafer Alston, Donyell Marshall and Jalen Rose as such.

After a nearly two month standoff, Babcock (LOL) bought ‘Zo out and he went on to re-sign with the Miami Heat and win the 2006 title alongside Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal.

If the Twittersphere over the past 24 hours is any indication, Mourning is a strong candidate to make it out of this region.

You know a player’s career didn’t exactly pan out the way they’d hope when the first google suggestion after you type the name is “eric montross wife”.

Montross was a two-time All-American at UNC, and even made a decent impact in his rookie season with the Celtics in 94-95, averaging 10 and 7 and making the rookie all-star game. His sharp decline started after that and he became nothing more than a bit player over the rest of his career.

He started 25 of the 61 games he played with the Raps, and scored 129 points while committing 107 fouls. If points to foul ratio was a stat, Montross would be quite bad.

What he did give us is another spectacular feature with YUNG PAUL JONES, for one of the last voyages of former Toronto institution Captain John’s seafood ship.

If you don’t vote for Alonzo Mourning, you’re doing this site a disservice.

#3 Michael Bradley vs. #6 Zan Tabak

I just had to put part two of the seafood adventure for Bradley and Montross’ Jay Bilas looking ass, because that shrimp cocktail is the only highlight of Michael Bradley’s career.

After averaging 20 and 10 at Villanova in his junior season, he entered the NBA Draft and was selected 17th overall by Toronto to be next in line of big man busts.

He barely played in his rookie season of 2001-02 as the team was actually decent, and his career never got on track as he finished his time in Toronto averaging 3.8 points and 4.5 rebounds over just 98 games. (Meanwhile, Zach Randolph, drafted 19th, is still hooping.)

His NBA career ended with the 76ers in 2005-06.

Tabak’s career between Europe and the NBA was relatively successful compared to some of the guys in the bracket, but his injuries and ailments land him in the matchup against Bradley.

As you can see here in his rehab, he’s wearing what some in the workout industry would call “bitch mittens”.

Over three seasons in Toronto he averaged 7 and 5, but will surely be remembered for this 24 point outburst against the Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.

#4 Alek Radojevic vs. #5 Benoit Benjamin

The Cinderella pick of editor-in-chief Daniel Reynolds, Alek Radojevic is all the proof you need that taking a 7’3’’ Euro from a community college in the first round of a draft might not always be the best decision.

Although he had D1 talent, he was ruled ineligible by Ohio State due to a pro contract in Europe, and Radojevic then plied his trade at Barton County CC before the Raps selected him 12th in the 1999 NBA Draft ahead of names like Andrei Kirilenko, Ron Artest, James Posey and, of course, Manu Ginobili.

He played a total of three games as a Raptor in his rookie season and due to injury troubles and poor play recorded a season long DNP in his sophomore season.

His greatest NBA achievement is most definitely being a part of the package sent to Denver that brought Keon Clark to Toronto.

No photos of Benjamin exist as a Raptor, as he only suited up for four games and scored a grand total of 13 points in his age-32 season.

Although he does hold some extremely prestigious records, including being the Clippers all-time leader in blocked shots, a member of the All-Canadian club to have played for Vancouver and Toronto, as well as being named one of the ten laziest NBA players of all time. Giddy up.

That concludes the opening round of Big Men Region 1. Check back on Monday for the Wings region, which features some of the biggest flops in franchise history. What a time.