I think his bladder is still half full
We never know what coulda been, but I agree that they didn't work as hard as they should've, when they were in the spotlight. Purple-tour was way too short, so was Tiny Music's tour (thx to Scott). I'm also guessing they missed other stuff too when Scott was chasing the dragon, who knows (tv-appearances, soundtracks etc.) A lot of people probably couldn't (and still can't see) him as anything but a junkie and they want their stars safe like Bon Jovi.
It's undeniable some really great stuff has come out of this guy creatively, more or less thanks to his problems, but it's a vicious circle. Always a price to pay.