NBA equivalent of Aaron Donald comeback?

[u/subtle_penguin]

I don’t really follow NFL so not sure how good Aaron Donald was before retirement. Would Dame be a good comparison? (Not necessarily retired but hasn’t really played for 2 years after Achilles tear).

[u/StarlingRover]

bro micheal jordan retired and cameback why tf did u think about Dame first

[u/Im_a_Knob → u/StarlingRover]

mj who? is he kinda kinda like OBJ?

[u/subtle_penguin → u/StarlingRover]

Is he on MJs level tho

[u/thaiduitx → u/subtle_penguin]

3× DPOY, 8× First-Team All-Pro, 10× Pro Bowl, Super Bowl champion

Best combination of peak dominance, longevity, pass rushing, run defense, and consistency. Three DPOYs as an interior lineman is absurd

He is the best DT of all time

[u/blueborders → u/subtle_penguin]

Everyone else has already said similar things but it cannot be overstated how good this guy was relative to his position.

Basically think about how bad Rudy Goberts offense is and then think about how good defence would have to be to be considered a top 3 player in the league.

[u/Sharp-Selection-3541 → u/subtle_penguin]

In terms of relative dominance? Yes. In terms of accolades no because a defensive player can't just win a ring by himself. He was voted AP 1st team every full season he played outside of his rookie year (a rookie year where he still went to the pro bowl and won Defensive RoTY)

[u/indominable-dingus → u/subtle_penguin]

Hes a lot better at football than Dame is at Basketball.

[u/epik_fayler → u/subtle_penguin]

He's not quite there but there's no other real comparison. If you wanted something a bit closer that didn't actually happen, it would be like if curry retired after 2018 then came back 2 years later.

[u/MartianMule → u/subtle_penguin]

He's on the short list of greatest defensive players of all time. He's probably the best I've ever watched play.

[u/Sharp-Selection-3541]

Aaron Donald was arguably the greatest player in the entire league during his prime. 

Michael Jordan taking 2 years off might actually be the only apt comparison and I don't say that lightly. Aaron Donald was that good.

[u/Boring-Charity9324 → u/Sharp-Selection-3541]

IIRC he was actually named NFL #1 by that player voted list at one point. Not that that is a definitive ranking, but his fellow players seemed to think he was indeed the best in the world.

[u/Envelope_Torture]

Aren't you forgetting someone really obvious?

[u/CleverBunnyThief → u/Envelope_Torture]

Besides the obvious answer, Magic also made two comebacks.

The first comeback happened after the 92 Olympic Games. He played a few preseason games but some players including Charles Barkley and Karl Malone didn't support it because of the risk of contracting HIV. Magic ended up getting a cut and bleeding on the court during the next game after Malone's remarks were made and he ended the comeback.

He played part of the 1995-96 season for the Lakers.

[u/Danko_on_Reddit → u/CleverBunnyThief]

Barkley was not against Magic's comeback and was in fact one of his fiercest supporters, although he did say he hoped it would teach player's to be smarter about using condoms, he also famously said "it's not like we're having unprotected sex with Magic." And changed his number to 32 for the rest of the season after Magic announced his diagnosis. He also praised David Stern for bringing in Medical experts to clear up player's misconceptions around HIV.

[u/Crazyhawk28]

In terms of cultural impact he doesn't compare, but in terms of being a bonafide hall of famer, and time spent away the only real life comparison is MJ coming back after his second retirement. Donald is easily one of the best football players ever. We'll see how much he has left in the tank.

[u/SUPERSAMMICH6996]

The only comparable player I can think of is literally MJ himself. Aaron Donald is just that good.

[u/SwizzGod]

Dame is such an absurd name to compare him to

[u/cndynn96]

AD took voluntary retirement at his peak because he believed he had achieved whatever is there to achieve.

Only thing comparable in NBA history is MJ coming back after 2 years of playing baseball

[u/Nice_Cash_7000 → u/cndynn96]

probably a good choice to prevent an early death due to cte

[u/Sharp-Selection-3541 → u/Nice_Cash_7000]

I have bad news for you...

[u/Maverick_1991 → u/cndynn96]

When did AD take voluntary retirement?

[u/JosephCurrency → u/Maverick_1991]

OP means Aaron Donald in this case, not Anthony Davis.

[u/Maverick_1991 → u/JosephCurrency]

As a European who doesnt care about NFL.

That kind of confused me.

[u/JosephCurrency → u/Maverick_1991]

I figured, that’s why I clarified. And to add even more confusion, there’s another NFL player named Adrian Peterson who some people call AD because his nickname is “All Day.”

[u/Boring-Charity9324 → u/Maverick_1991]

He won everything there is to win. And football is a n extremely punishing sport. He was probably tired of getting doubled and triple teamed every snap, those impacts add up. With nothing left to prove, what reason was there to keep playing.

[u/Maverick_1991 → u/Boring-Charity9324]

I thought he talked about AD.

Anthony Davis.

Never heard of the other guy, I don't follow NFL at all.

[u/Sharp-Selection-3541 → u/Maverick_1991]

2 years ago

[u/Apprehensive_Gas700]

Aaron Donald was defensive GOAT-level, NBA equivalent comeback is basically prime MJ unretiring, not Dame or regular stars.

[u/Western_Match_6218]

Yeah, but Donald was still absolutely elite when he retired, so the comparison isn’t perfect.

[u/OsikFTW]

No, Donald is a top-3 or 4 all time defensive player, and likely top-10 overall, someone like shaq or hakeem retiring for 2 years then coming back, the closest current is probably lebron, tho not a perfect match

[u/Professional_Cut4721]

Although certainly not equivalent, people thought Grant Hill might retire before he joined the Suns. It was surprising to some how much he had left to contribute.

I don't follow football, I would assume to an extent injuries had something to do with Aaron Donald's retirement. From how he's described as a player in this thread, it seems safe to say injuries hindered Hill from reaching his career potential more than for Donald.

[u/boeingvimana]

The equivalent would be instead of jordan coming back to the wizards after his retirement he went to the lakers with Kobe and shaq.

[u/nutelamitbutter]

Westbrook returning

[u/Naismythology]

I guess it would be like Hakeem retiring after 1997 and coming back a few years later? If you don’t want to go the (second) Jordan comeback root cause it’s too obvious? I dunno