NBA Players Who Choked in the Playoffs

by Jeremy Block - 7/24/2025

Every year, the NBA playoffs roll around and someone’s hype train crashes into a wall of double teams, stupid mistakes, and uncomfortable questions about whether they’re actually built for the big stage or not. Look, regular season dominance is one thing. But when the lights get bright and team defenses actually try, some guys have the tendency to fold like a lawn chair at a family reunion.

So here we are, taking a look at NBA players who underperformed in the playoffs. They put up numbers when the stakes were low, then disappeared the second things got real. Let’s look at seven NBA players who never showed up come playoff time.

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James Harden

Watching him in April and May sometimes felt like watching someone play NBA 2K, considering how dominant he was with the ball in his hands—especially in isolation. Between Harden’s step-back threes, foul baiting, and slick passing, defenses had no choice but to smother him, and they usually paid the price. But come playoff time? Whole different story.

Harden's playoff struggles hit a nerve because of how elite he looked in the regular season. He won the 2018 MVP averaging 30.4 points per game, then followed it up by shooting just 22.7% from three in the 2019 playoffs. He’s shot under 25% from deep in three different playoff series, and his Game 7s were only more oil to the fire. For a guy with a scoring title, Harden’s postseasons drop-offs were a bit too common.

Brandon Jennnings

Some players look the part until the playoffs expose the truth—enter Brandon Jennings. Jennings had himself a solid regular season career averaging 15.5 points and 5.6 assists on 39.4% shooting, which, while not the prettiest, at least looked aggressive. But once the postseason came around, his production flatlined.

Across 27 career playoff games, he averaged just 8.9 points, and his 3-point shooting dropped to an ugly 23% and 37% from the floor. Yes, he still had the ball, still had the green light, but his game got swallowed up by defenses. The same pull-up jumper and off-the-dribble scoring that gave teams problems in the regular season suddenly disappeared.

World B. Free

Some scorers are walking heat checks until the playoffs show up and pull the plug. World B. Free made a living torching defenses in the regular season, averaging 20.3 points per game for his career. But once April hit, the fire went out. In the playoffs, his scoring dropped to 14 points from 20 per game, and his shooting percentage sank from 45% to 39%.

And this wasn’t some one-off cold streak. He logged playoff games with three different teams, and the script never changed. Regular season: gunner who could carry an offense. Postseason: efficiency tanked, shot selection tightened up, and his whole game got swallowed by actual defense.

Glenn Robinson

There was a time when Glenn Robinson was one of the league’s most automatic scorers. He had a smooth jumper, good size for a wing, and a green light on every team he played for. In the regular season, he averaged 20.7 points per game on nearly 46% shooting and rarely looked uncomfortable with the ball in his hands.

But once the playoffs hit, that comfort disappeared. His scoring dropped to 13.8 points, his efficiency dipped, and he never came close to matching his regular-season output. By the time his career was winding down, it was just understood: the playoffs were a tough pill for Robinson. He wasn’t drawing attention, wasn’t ripping up defenses, and his minutes and impact shrank year after year.

Derrick Coleman

A player with Derrick Coleman’s physical gifts and regular-season production should have been a nightmare for playoff defenses. Averaging nearly 17 points and 9.3 rebounds per game on 45% shooting during his prime, Coleman was a force to be reckoned with in the regular season.

However, when the postseason pressure turned up, so did the dip in his game. Over multiple playoff runs, Coleman’s scoring dropped to about 16 points per game and rebounds fell to 8.5 per contest. Even worse, he scored under 13 points per game in the postseason for four seasons straight. Like him or not, that decline is exactly what puts him on this list of NBA players who flatlined come playoff time.

Gilbert Arenas

Putting up points was Gilbert Arenas’ regular-season MO. He averaged 25.3 points per game, and the regular season almost looked like a shootaround for him, constantly giving defenses headaches. The offense ran through him, and most nights he made it look effortless. But come playoff time, Arenas wasn’t anywhere near that version of himself.

His postseason production started to drop after the 2005 run with the Wizards. By 2007, his playoff averages fell to 10.8 points per 24 minutes, shooting 41% from the field and a cold 30% from three. Not exactly the ‘Agent Zero’ you remember, huh? For a guy who carried his team all season, Arenas flatlined when it counted most, making him a prime example of NBA players who flatlined come playoff time.

Rex Chapman

There was a time when Rex Chapman looked like a dependable scorer who could stretch the floor and give defenses real problems in the 90’s. He averaged 14 points per game in the regular season, had a solid jumper, and usually found his rhythm with the ball in his hands. For a guy who played with confidence and volume, you'd expect at least some of that to carry into the postseason.

In four playoff runs where he saw over 19 minutes a game, Chapman only averaged more than 9.0 points once and shot under 28% from the field in two of them. The same guy who was a walking bucket from long range suddenly couldn’t hit the ocean.

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Start:	July 25, 2025 @ 10:10 PM
Expert:	Vernon Croy
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NBA Players Who Choked in the Playoffs

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