People don’t know that about him.”ĭraymond Green echoed Waiter’s comments on an ESPN radio appearance. Former teammate Dion Waiters confirmed this notion in a Player’s Tribune piece he said “Kev used to talk wild trash to me too. Many players cite Durant as an underrated trash talker. It may surprise some people that the seemingly quiet and unassuming Durant would be included on a list of the best trash talkers in the league but don’t let that stoic facade fool you, KD loves to remind his man that they can’t guard him right before he drains a sweet jumper in their grill. Everybody is expecting them to get scored on and lose so why not try a different approach? All it takes is for one fish to bite. Trash talkers like Stephenson know they have nothing to lose when it comes to verbally jousting with those higher up the food chain. Obviously it backfired in this case, the Heat won the series and LeBron went off in the following games but that was probably going to happen regardless. The LeBron incident is a perfect example of the annoyance method, doing something irritable to your opponent (blowing in their ear), in the hope that it throws them off their game just enough that you can take advantage. This “by any means necessary” approach to trash talk won’t win many friends but it can help you win your fair share of battles. The Brooklyn playground legend, known as Born Ready in the borough, is cut from the New York City tradition of smack talk where annoying your opponent and irrational confidence are the mouds operari for any hooper to succeed in the concrete jungle. Wait the guy who blew in LeBron’s ear that one time? Look for more wayward souls to find solace in the teachings of the Holy Book of Westbrook this season and even more to enjoy watching a trash talking master dress down his opponents in more ways than one. Off the court he’s shown equal expertise, employing the social media subliminal dig, passive aggression and even aiming his ire at media members. His infamous verbal confrontation with former teammate Kevin Durant demonstrated the phonetic perfection of a trash talking virtuoso. On the court he’s shown he can jaw with the best of them, taking on all comers-the young, the old, the strong, the weak, the fans and hell even the hopeless Knicks. Russell Westbrook is not only one of the best players in the Association but one of its finest orators in the art of shit talking. The 2016-2017 MVP has converted many a pagan worshipper to the Church of Russ where parishioners testify their faith to triple doubles, one man fast breaks, vicious dunks, all out effort and giving Andre Roberson this look whenever he tees up a three. I trust you’ll note that three of the five players listed are All Stars, proving that talk isn’t always cheap. It gets the competitive juices flowing and is as much a pep talk for the talker, as it a way to psych the opponent out.Īs a celebration of this NBA tradition, we have listed the best trash talkers in the league by position. Confidence is the key for any player to succeed and one of the surest ways for a player to maintain faith in their own game is for them to engage in trash talk. Trash talk is as old as the sport itself, with many of the game’s most acclaimed players noted equally for their verbal prowess as their athletic ability. A distinctly meritocratic environment devoid of the polite “thank you’s” and apt “excuse me’s” of the outside world, replaced with eff bombs, aggressive commands and a decidedly diminished filter when it comes to telling someone how you feel. Then there is the language of the gym, learned later in life but its speakers fluent all the same. There is of course the language of the outside world, the native tongue, where politeness and courtesy are valued, a place where most people are given the benefit of the doubt, and direct conflict avoided as much as possible. “I’m just looking around to see who’s going to finish second.” – Larry BirdĮvery basketball player on the planet is bilingual, whether they know it or not. “If you don’t have anything nice to say then don’t say anything at all” -Mothers everywhere
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