You remember incorrectly. LJIII was a favorite of RealGM, who said he was a leading candidate for MIP, and Charley Rosen of Fox Sports. It wasnt his teammates who said nice things about him, although Ed Stefanski (who signed him when the Tractor Traylor physical went south) did say he was looking good.
In 2004, however, people were saying nice things about Ron Mercer til he got hurt.