Re(1): Players who were once great that somehow reversed course Posted on May 12, 2022 at 11:12:49 PM by Haitian Gary
Dania's Arriaga is probably the biggest reversal I've witnessed in my 25+ years watching jai-alai, primarily in South FL. He had a major drop off in his mid 30s, around 2010, give or take. He was ineffective in partidos, in the Basque Country, around that time. Egi & Zen had already given him a run for his money in years prior, as top front, and Celaya had a late Renaissance around 2007 to 2008, but Arriaga really lost his grasp, around 2010, when Diego came into his prime and Erik had worked his way into late games. Between Diego, Erik, Solozabal, an up and coming Zulaika, Angel, the consistent Arregui, Arrieta, and eventually Hormatexea, Arriaga completely lost his dominance of the late games. He even switched to back court for a season. Olatxu was his name, I think.
This is interesting, because I think Arriaga hit his prime in his 20s, whereas, Diego continued to improve and hit that point in his 30s. It may also have to do with the competition. I'm curious what other chalkies think.
And Bada, as I mentioned in another post, I disagree that Tevin had a major letdown, because I don't think he was a star to begin with. He was a fine and smart player, with a stellar left side turn on the rebote. He did well on the Milford court, against that competition, even in some tournaments, but he was outclassed in Miami, with overall average numbers. Guys like Aretio, Lejardi, and Jabi were in a different league, not to mention Goico, and eventually Aritz. It was not an easy field, but he played well against great competition. When he arrived at Dania, he was, or was almost 45. I can't really discount his play at Dania, as he was immediately thrown into late games vs. many fronts that were in their prime and also superior. Replies:
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