Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is Part 6 in an ongoing series where I look at players who only appeared on certain teams in video games.

Can you believe this topic has produced six instalments of The Friday Five? Actually, it’s not altogether surprising. With the amount of player movement in the NBA, the timing of video game releases, and the eventual introduction of regular official roster updates, stints where players never officially tallied a minute for a certain team have made their way onto the virtual hardwood. It’s something that’s happened for a lot of players who are career journeymen, and generally benchwarmers and training camp fodder. However, it’s also happened with some bigger names as well.

With that being said, the five examples that I’m profiling this time were not big name players. I’m sure most long-time basketball fans will recognise at least some of them though, especially as one is a streetball legend. It’s easy to forget the “phantom stints” that can only be found in video games when it comes to players that move around a lot, but when you revisit an old title, the memories come flooding back. Alternatively, you’ll be led down a rabbit hole when something looks like a mistake! Along with familiar faces in strange and familiar places, it’s an aspect of basketball video game trivia that I really enjoy exploring. To that end, let’s get to five more examples!

1. Rafer Alston (Golden State Warriors, NBA Live 2003)

Let’s tip things off with that aforementioned streetball legend: Rafer Alston, aka Skip 2 My Lou. Drafted by Milwaukee in the second round in 1998, Alston played a year in the CBA before joining the Bucks. The most remarkable aspect of his first three years in the league was probably the appearance of his streetball persona in the first NBA Street game, as he played limited minutes as a backup. He began making strides in his fourth season, during his first stint with the Raptors. Alston’s best years came in Houston, following a season with the Heat, and his second stint in Toronto. His NBA career ended in 2010 after brief stints in Orlando, New Jersey, and Miami once again.

So, where do the Golden State Warriors fit in? Between his Bucks and first Raptors stint, that’s where! While Skip 2 My Lou was a streetball legend, Rafter Alston had struggled to make the transition to the NBA. The Bucks let him walk in 2002, and he signed with the Warriors in September, just in time to be included as a member of their roster in NBA Live 2003 PC. With rising star Gilbert Arenas and veteran Bob Sura on the team however, minutes were going to be scarce, and the Warriors cut him in October. It resulted in another appearance that’s exclusive to a video game, but also an even more exiting young team to play with if you kept Alston in Golden State.

2. Sherman Douglas (Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA Live 98)

Arguably one of the best second round picks of his era, Sherman Douglas had a solid career spanning twelve years, which included being named to the All-Rookie First Team in 1990. He peaked in his second season with the Heat, but was nevertheless a frequent starter or one of the first players off the bench after moving on to the Celtics and later the Bucks. In September 1997, he was part of the blockbuster deal that sent Shawn Kemp to the Cavaliers, Terrell Brandon to the Bucks, and Vin Baker to the SuperSonics. Douglas was set to join Kemp in Cleveland, but was traded to Denver a month later. The Nuggets released him, and he signed with the Nets on October 31st.

These moves late in the 1997 offseason occurred between NBA Live 98’s rosters being finalised, and the game’s release. It made Douglas one of a handful of players – Stacey King and Stephen Jackson being two other examples I’ve already covered – who appeared on a team in NBA Live 98 that they didn’t end up playing any games for in real life. Incidentally, Douglas holds the distinction of never defeating Michael Jordan in 30 match-ups during their overlapping careers. He’s not the only player to be winless against MJ, but that 0-30 record is, well, a record! Larry Bird’s 19-0 record over Major Jones is second, now that Kemba Walker has a win over LeBron James.

3. Dontae’ Jones (New York Knicks, NBA Live 97)

I’ll be honest: I don’t so much remember Dontae’ Jones from NBA Live 97 PC as I do creating him in 1997 roster updates for NBA Live 96 PC, and from a trading card that I ended up getting in more than a couple of packs back in the day. However, as far as official reminders that you can still revisit today, NBA Live 97 is the game where you will find Dontae’ Jones on the New York Knicks’ roster. He was the third of three first round picks that the Knicks had in the 1996 Draft, and was notably the only pick that they originally owned. Walter McCarty and John Wallace came via picks acquired from Detroit via San Antonio, and Atlanta via Miami as compensation for Pat Riley.

Funnily enough, all three players were out of New York after one season! Wallace was traded to the Raptors, while Jones and McCarty were sent to Boston, where the latter became a fan favourite. A key difference between Jones and his fellow Class of 1996 Draftees is that he missed the entire 1997 season due to a foot injury, thus his first (and as it turned out, only) NBA campaign came the following year. As such, the only action he saw in a Knicks uniform – not counting photographs taken for trading cards – was in video games. Once again, NBA Live 97 PC is where you’ll find that official appearance on New York’s roster that never amounted to minutes in real life.

4. Slavko Vranes (New York Knicks, NBA Live 2004)

I’ve already recounted the story of Slavko Vranes’ brief NBA career, specifically from the perspective of a player who appeared in more video games than official NBA games. His single game for the Portland Trail Blazers was never officially represented in any video games, as it came after he signed a 10-day contract in January 2004. This led to a second video game appearance in NBA Live 2005, albeit in the Free Agents Pool. His first appearance in NBA Live 2004 saw him on the New York Knicks, who had drafted him 39th Overall in 2003. Although he made it through training camp and the preseason, he was released in December, leading to his short stint in Portland.

I’m guessing that there are a few long-time Knicks fans who vaguely remember the name of Slavko Vranes as one of their more uninspiring Draft picks. Unlike the Jerome James signing, this one can’t even be blamed on Isiah Thomas, who wasn’t hired until about a week before Vranes was released. In Ernie Grunfeld’s defense, second round success stories tend to be rarer, though he did pass up on Mo Williams and Kyle Korver, as well as Steve Blake, Zaza Pachulia, Keith Bogans, Willie Green, and James Jones. Given his height – 7’5″ in the games, and allegedly 7’7″ according to some sources – gamers likely found more success with Vranes on the virtual Knicks.

5. Darrick Martin (Denver Nuggets, NBA Live 2003)

When you think about it, there’s a certain amount of disrespect when NBA players become memes. Jokes about Brian Scalabrine being The GOAT shouldn’t detract from the fact that he made it to the NBA, played 11 years in the league, and could absolutely outplay anyone who never got close to going pro. Within our community, and possibly among NBA fans elsewhere, Darrick Martin enjoyed some popularity as a meme. He’s undoubtedly a success story though, finding a place in the NBA after he went undrafted in 1992. Darrick Martin’s best years came as a starter for the Clippers in the mid to late 90s, which included a surprising Playoff appearance in 1997.

Martin played for six teams over 13 NBA seasons, but one that he didn’t suit up for was the Denver Nuggets. He did sign with them in 2002 though, after a forgettable three games with the Mavericks the previous year in which his only points came at the free throw line. Martin was a preseason cut, but that came well after the cut-off date for the PC version of NBA Live 2003. He can therefore be found on the Nuggets in the game, facilitating retro and future rosters alike, as he returned to the NBA and played until 2008. NLSC Forum memes aside, you may recall Martin for his trash-talking of Michael Jordan, inspiring a comeback victory and blunt retort from MJ.

And now, the floor is yours. Do you remember these stints and the video games they appeared in? Did you ever make use of a player’s game-exclusive appearance to give your team’s roster a boost in a franchise mode? Let me know in the comments, and as always, feel free to take the discussion to the NLSC Forum! That’s all for this week, so thanks for checking in, have a great weekend, and please join me again next Friday for another Five.