Alternate SPORTS! History Thread

[DnBronc]

What if the Indianapolis Colts selected Ryan Leaf? Would he have had more success than with the Chargers? Would Manning have busted at San Diego?

This is talked about here: http://thesportspost.com/blogs/view/nfl-what-if-1998-nfl-draft-peyton-manning-ryan-leaf

If the Colts take Leaf, they probably end up 2-14, and they get the #2 pick (remember that Cleveland was the #1 pick) in the 99 draft.

Since Peyton isn't there, and because Leaf is already looking like a big bust, Polian decides to make the trade that he turned down in reality (they could have done the Ricky Williams trade with NO, but decided against it). They could have gotten more first rounders (from 99-02) than the Skins got, as well as getting NO's entire 99 draft.

That trade could have netted them several star players and key contributors over the next few years, like Anthony McFarland, Brian Urlacher, Shaun Alexander, Richard Seymour, and Drew Brees (while still getting Reggie Wayne in Round 2).

With those pieces (and others not mentioned), they go on to be the preeminent team of the 2000's.

So... you're saying it would've been better for the Colts to draft Leaf instead of Manning?

Well, if Polian actually did that trade, and made the right picks, you never know.

[cubsfan2015]

What if,in 1998,Dan Wheldon raced in NASCAR and not racing in INDYCAR?

Would Wheldon be good,good enough to win an championship?

[Guest]

16 pages and I'm shocked none of you NASCAR people have brought up the can of worms that is the alternate history of Dale Earnhardt not getting killed at the 2001 Daytona 500. Just off the top of my head:

• If Earnhardt doesn't crash, how does he do the rest of his career?
• Do all the safety enhancements that come to racing get delayed without his death?
• Does Kevin Harvick's stint with RCR go as successfully as it did if he's thrown into the third car as planned instead of straight to Earnhardt's?
• And for that matter, does Dale Jr's career arc take a different turn as well?
• Although it's mostly due to the move to Fox and NBC as television partners, does NASCAR's resurgence in popularity still happen without all the mainstream publicity that comes with Earnhardt's death? As awful as that sounds, remember that Earnhardt's death was arguably the biggest news story of 2001 before 9/11

Maybe because I didn't notice the existence of this thread until February 2015?

Accidents/tragedies can't always be prevented, but if we learn nothing from them, then those people have died in vain.

[DnBronc]

If Kobe & Shaq actually liked each other? Another 3 titles, at least, guaranteed. Perhaps not in a row or bunched up... yet that duo & talent they could invite to the Lakers would be a winning machine.

In the fall of 1999, Phil Jackson tried to trade Kobe to the Suns for Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion:

http://forums.lakersground.net/togo/thread.php?topic_id=116216

[goalieboy82]

what if Billie Jean King lost to Bobby Riggs. what would have happen after (and what if there was a rematch)

[DnBronc]

Buffalo was seriously considered for a team at some point? Good lord, that would have turned out badly. They'd have gotten a few years more than the Pilots, at least.

Yes, in 69 , they were, but in a 19 69 issue of SI, Montreal was preferred for expansion over Buffalo because the NL owners liked the city of Montreal better.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

What you did there, I see it. .

Moving on, what if the Grizzlies would have won the 2003 Lottery, giving them the rights to draft Lebron first overall?

[DnBronc]

What if the WHA merged happened before the 77-78 season? Would all the teams that were left out be let it (Birmingham, Cincinnati, Houston, and Indianapolis) and would they have been given measures to maintain financial stability?

Besides the WHA-NHL plan that was to include six teams (Houston and Cincy along with NE, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Quebec), there was, apparently, another merger plan talked about that year:

http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1977/06/24/page/58/article/nhl-mulls-merger-with-4-wha-clubs

In this plan, Quebec, Hartford, Edmonton, and Cincinnati would be admitted. Then, Edmonton would merge with the Colorado Rockies, and Cincinnati would merge with the struggling Cleveland Baron club.

[NJTank]

Think of all the cups the Indianapolis Racers would have won with Gretzky.

[Unocal]

What if Laettner either misses THE SHOT against Kentucky or is ejected for the stomp?

Who wins a Kentucky/Indiana semifinal, and do either of them beat Michigan in the title game?

[DnBronc]

What if Laettner either misses THE SHOT against Kentucky or is ejected for the stomp?

Who wins a Kentucky/Indiana semifinal, and do either of them beat Michigan in the title game?

Actually, I think that UK rides the momentum past the Hoosiers and into the title game, but the Fab 5 are able to overcome The Unforgettables in the title game.

I would like to go back two years, though, to 1990, and two games (one of them involving a Laettner buzzer-beater):

1. What if Tate George doesn't drop the steal out of bounds in OT, and U-Conn goes to the Final Four?

2. What if Ball State makes a 3 to beat UNLV at the buzzer in their Regional Semifinal game?

[Unocal]

What if the 2013 Bruins/Maple Leafs playoff series had never even happened?

Boston only played Toronto because they lost the final game of the shortened season to Ottawa.

Consider this:

http://bruins.nhl.com/gamecenter/en/preview?id=2012020624

If Boston wins in regulation, the Bruins face the New York Islanders in the first round while Ottawa meets the Pittsburgh Penguins. Montreal Canadiens takes on the Toronto Maple Leafs in the other undetermined matchup in the Eastern Conference.

If Boston wins in overtime or a shootout, the Bruins' first-round opponent will be the Senators and Pittsburgh will take on the Islanders. Montreal and Toronto remains the four-vs.-five matchup in the East.

[DnBronc]

What if the 2013 Bruins/Maple Leafs playoff series had never even happened?

Boston only played Toronto because they lost the final game of the shortened season to Ottawa.

Consider this:

http://bruins.nhl.com/gamecenter/en/preview?id=2012020624

If Boston wins in regulation, the Bruins face the New York Islanders in the first round while Ottawa meets the Pittsburgh Penguins. Montreal Canadiens takes on the Toronto Maple Leafs in the other undetermined matchup in the Eastern Conference.

If Boston wins in overtime or a shootout, the Bruins' first-round opponent will be the Senators and Pittsburgh will take on the Islanders. Montreal and Toronto remains the four-vs.-five matchup in the East.

Boston probably meets Toronto in the second round after getting by the Isles in 6. I can see that series going either way, but I think that the Pens are in the Stanley Cup if Toronto wins. I don't see either team beating the Blackhawks, though.

Switching gears to the NFL. A few weeks ago, I heard something interesting on this Packer Fan podcast:

http://greengold4ever.podbean.com/e/green-and-gold-forever-3-19-2015-1426812629/

They said that, allegedly, Ron Wolf may have gotten rid of Sterling Sharpe at the end of the 1994 season if he didn't get hurt because they weren't getting along.

That offseason, the Pack dealt Mark Brunell to Jacksonville (after almost trading him to Philly). What if they traded Sharpe and Brunell to the Jaguars? What type of haul do you think they get back in return?

[Unocal]

What if the 2012 Devils had lost to the Panthers in the first round of the playoffs? That completely changes the East playoffs.

Either Florida (with Jose Theodore) or Philly (with Bryzgalov) would have played the NY Rangers in the East Finals. Which of those three makes the Finals, and how do they fare against the Kings/

Also, without a deep playoff run that doesn't boost his free agency profile, what becomes of Zach Parise in the summer of 2012? No way Minnesota throws all that money at him if he had another one and done as Devils captain.

Does he stay in New Jersey or does someone else (i.e. Pittsburgh) go after him? Does Minnesota go after a different offensive player to go with Suter?

[TheLAKnight]

What if the 2012 Devils had lost to the Panthers in the first round of the playoffs? That completely changes the East playoffs.

Either Florida (with Jose Theodore) or Philly (with Bryzgalov) would have played the NY Rangers in the East Finals. Which of those three makes the Finals, and how do they fare against the Kings/

Also, without a deep playoff run that doesn't boost his free agency profile, what becomes of Zach Parise in the summer of 2012? No way Minnesota throws all that money at him if he had another one and done as Devils captain.

Does he stay in New Jersey or does someone else (i.e. Pittsburgh) go after him? Does Minnesota go after a different offensive player to go with Suter?

Philly probably would have beaten Florida in a longer series then lost to NY in the Eastern Finals. I don't think it would have mattered much because the Kings were on a roll at the time. May have been an sweep rather than being dragged on to game 6.

[DnBronc]

I have two "what if" scenarios from the 1996 draft:

1. If Simeon Rice didn't do a late charge into the top-3, the Cardinals would have taken Jonathan Ogden (they should have, anyway), leaving the Ravens to take Lawrence Phillips (rated right after Ogden on the board).

It would have been interesting to see how Lawrence and Ray Lewis would have gotten along.

Also, with the fifth overall pick, the Giants probably take Rice instead of Cedric Jones, and that would have created a formidable pass rush duo with him and Strahan.

It's possible that Simeon Rice may have influenced who would have won the SB four years later.

2. As part of the agreement earlier that year to bring the Browns back in 99, what if any picks that the Brown-Raven organization traded for as the Browns were held for them until 99, and the Ravens were defaulted to 10th overall in each round in 96?

In 1999, the Browns would have had two first-round picks, two second-round picks, two third-round picks, two fourth-rounders, three fifth-rounders, three sixth-rounders, and four seventh-rounders. With that ammunition, maybe they are the ones making the Ricky Williams trade.

[Tigers6884]

I have two "what if" scenarios from the 1996 draft:

1. If Simeon Rice didn't do a late charge into the top-3, the Cardinals would have taken Jonathan Ogden (they should have, anyway), leaving the Ravens to take Lawrence Phillips (rated right after Ogden on the board).

It would have been interesting to see how Lawrence and Ray Lewis would have gotten along.

Also, with the fifth overall pick, the Giants probably take Rice instead of Cedric Jones, and that would have created a formidable pass rush duo with him and Strahan.

It's possible that Simeon Rice may have influenced who would have won the SB four years later.

2. As part of the agreement earlier that year to bring the Browns back in 99, what if any picks that the Brown-Raven organization traded for as the Browns were held for them until 99, and the Ravens were defaulted to 10th overall in each round in 96?

In 1999, the Browns would have had two first-round picks, two second-round picks, two third-round picks, two fourth-rounders, three fifth-rounders, three sixth-rounders, and four seventh-rounders. With that ammunition, maybe they are the ones making the Ricky Williams trade.

They would form a duo that would kill the opposition.

[TheOldRoman]

Yeah, reading that my first thought was that Lewis and Phillips would become a murderous tandem. They would travel around the nation dancing and stabbing people in night clubs. And as OJ showed, you can get away with two stabbing deaths, but after that karma will catch up to you. So, 18 stabbings later, eventually Phillips and Lewis are apprehended in Shreveport, and the Ravens never would have won a Super Bowl.

[Tigers6884]

Yeah, reading that my first thought was that Lewis and Phillips would become a murderous tandem. They would travel around the nation dancing and stabbing people in night clubs. And as OJ showed, you can get away with two stabbing deaths, but after that karma will catch up to you. So, 18 stabbings later, eventually Phillips and Lewis are apprehended in Shreveport, and the Ravens never would have won a Super Bowl.

You're on a roll today. Well done.

[Unocal]

What if the 2007 Mavericks and Warriors had never met up in the first round?

Golden State had the same record as the #7 seeded Lakers, but L.A. won a tiebreaker.

If GSW had finished with one more win, we would have gotten Mavericks/Lakers and Suns/Warriors in the first round of the playoffs- which could have completely altered the entire playoff complexion.

Dallas usually did well against the Lakers in the post-Shaq and pre-Pau era, and playoff Staples would not have rattled them the way Oracle did. And Dirk's MVP season probably is seen differently

Suns/Warriors could have been the most fun 2-7 series ever.

If Dallas doesn't go out early, they play Utah in round 2. I don't think Utah wins that series considering they don't have homecourt and they were a schizo team away from Delta Center.

Might the Suns have played the Spurs any differently, or could Golden State have worn them out?

And if we get a Mavs/Spurs rematch of their epic 2006 series.... who knows what happens there?

The 2007 Spurs title is always remembered as a yeah but title (The Suns series controversy, avoiding Dallas, getting Utah).

I think they might have been seen differently if they went through Dallas to get to the FInals.

[goalieboy82]

what if instead of the Brisbane Bears being rebranded Brisbane Lions (after the merger with Fitzroy) the Fitzroy Lions became Fitzroy Bears instead (thus staying in Melbourne).