Tracy McGrady names the most underrated players he ever faced: "Oh, man, he was unbelievable. Un, freaking, believable"
Every era of basketball has its icon, the guy who seems to carry the whole generation on his back. The '70s had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The '80s were all about Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, two legends who saved the league and set the standard for greatness. Then came the '90s, and you already know the name — Michael Jordan. The player who became the measuring stick for everyone who came after.
But for every household name who gets the headlines, there are a handful of guys who always flew under the radar. Players who might not have had the shoe deals, the constant highlight packages on SportsCenter, or the championship rings. But those who had to match up against them knew just how deadly these hoopers were when the ball was in their hands.
And Tracy McGrady, a certified bucket himself, recently took a moment to show love to some of those guys who don't get talked about enough.
"Man, I got a couple," Tracy said when asked about the most underrated players he ever played against, before quickly continuing his list.
"That was Jamal Mashburn, Cuttino Mobley, Ricky Davis was pretty good. I got like the highlight guys that nobody talks about. Like, these guys were good players. But, Jamal Mashburn and Cuttino Mobley are underrated hoopers for me. And another one — Peja Stojakovic! I hated guarding him. Hated guarding Peja. Oh, man, he was unbelievable. Un, freaking, believable," the retired bucket-getter added.
If anyone can speak on underrated hoopers, it's T-Mac. A guy who saw it all during his time in the league, from locking horns with Kobe Bryant to trying to be a veteran presence on title-hunting teams.
And you can tell, just from how McGrady said it, that these weren't empty compliments. Mashburn, Mobley, Ricky and Peja. These were guys who made his nights longer, who forced him to bring just a little bit extra. Because if you didn't, they'd light you up in a matter of seconds. The fact that so few fans today mention their names made T-Mac want to shine a light on them.Mashburn was one of the most polished scorers of his generation. He had the size to bully smaller defenders and the finesse and quickness to embarrass big men who tried to stop him. Mash could get you 20 on any night without breaking a sweat. Injuries might've robbed him of a longer peak, but when he was at his best, good luck trying to put him off his game.
Mobley was the lefty who could cook you in isolation, knock down the open three, and never seemed rushed. Mobley had that old-man-at-the-park vibe in the way he controlled the tempo. And T-Mac knows it all too well.
McGrady didn't even try to hide how much respect he had for Peja's game. A Serbian sharpshooter before the three-point boom took over the league. Stojakovic had it all in his arsenal, from coming off screens to creating his own shot and setting up teammates.
These were the guys who didn't always get the front-page treatment, but ask anyone who had to face them — they'll tell you the same thing T-Mac did. And while they might not be on every fan's all-time list, the players who went toe-to-toe with them never forgot what they brought to the court.This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
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