Biggest ego-to-talent ratios in NBA history?

[turnaroundJ]

Forget scrubs. Among stars, I present Mr. Paul Pierce. A great man once said, "They don't love you like that."

[Hoopz Afrik]

I think I remember Reggie Jackson saying something to the effect of "how do you expect me to win games for you if I don't have the ball or ain't in the game" while he was in OKC with KD and Russ. Not an exact quote but something to that effect. Imagine having those kind of delusions of grandeur.

[heezyo2o]

There's a difference between ego and personality. Just because a person has a loud, out-going personality, I don't think that necessarily makes them have a big ego.

[John Murdoch]

Stephenson , Raja Bell

[matt6715]

Dion Waiters aka "Kobe Wade"

Read on Twitter

https://www.thescore.com/nba/news/1036212

[The_Hater]

In league history, who are the guys who are far cockier than their talent would justify?

To be clear, anyone who is a top 100 player of all time should be considered too talented to qualify.


Weak example: Monta "have it all" Ellis (huge ego but also very talented)

Average example: Nick Young (bench player with the ego of a cocky all-star)

Strong example: Mario Hezonja (possibly the GOAT of the category)


Who else you got?

3 Great examples.

Stanley Johnson is a really bad player who seems to think he has offensive skill and should have the ball in his hands. To comic proportions actually. His out of control drives to the hoop almost always end in a charge.

JR Smith is likely at home waiting for his hall of fame induction ceremony.

Dion Waiters was mentioned, he’ll probably insist on being the captain of this team.

[The_Hater]

Charles Oakley wasn't really talented was a fake tough guy and biggest ego

Huge ego but definitely not a fake tough guy. Absolutely nobody in the league wanted to go toe to toe with Oak. He was a very strong man and he was a very bad man. Players never got in his face.

[Cubbies2120]

Allen iverson.
He felt entitled to take far too many shots and had too much of an ego for what his actual talent was.

You could apply this same statement to Kobe for the last 3 years of his career after his injury.

To put it in perspective, he averaged the same # of shots per game in 2013 (shot 46.3% from field) as he did in 2015 (shot 37.3% from field). His ego didn't let him shoot less despite him having clearly fallen off as a player from a few years prior.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Rashad McCants.

He's an evil evil man. And he'll steal your soul if you let him near you.

[The_Hater]

If we’re going to mention star players too, Kyrie needs to be included. His level of self entitlement is something I’ve never seen before in the NBA.

Pierce and Shaq have unfortunately both taken their extra large egos to the broadcast booth with very negative results.

[Wallace_Wallace]

Star player wise, Carmelo Anthony refused to entertain the idea that he might be in the 2nd unit. Always complaining about his player ranking when it's usually justified. He feels very entitled overall.

[Beethoven]

Charles Oakley wasn't really talented was a fake tough guy and biggest ego

Huge ego but definitely not a fake tough guy. Absolutely nobody in the league wanted to go toe to toe with Oak. He was a very strong man and he was a very bad man. Players never got in his face.

I guess he was a very bad man, you dont have to be a bad man to play fierce in basketball. However I disagree about how strong he was, there was an all star weekend back then dont recall which one, but they were making some of the guys do bench press, and he could not bench as much as some of the other dudes. Not the best gauge but still something to look at. Strong sure, but not very strong relative to many in NBA back then.

[Bad-Thoma]

[Stone]

Sorry to go OT, but this reminded thread made me remember something Baseball player Ricky Henderson one said.

He was asked if a young player reminded him of himself and he replied......."Ain't but nobody remind Ricky of Ricky, except Ricky".....He had a habit of referring to himself in the third person but that one took the cake. I still laugh at it 30 something years later.

[drchaos]

If we’re going to mention star players too, Kyrie needs to be included. His level of self entitlement is something I’ve never seen before in the NBA.

Pierce and Shaq have unfortunately both taken their extra large egos to the broadcast booth with very negative results.

Kyrie is one of the most talented players the league has ever seen.

Whatever you think about his ego there have got to be some players with swelled heads nowhere near his level of ability.

Derek Coleman was a headcase but undeniably talented as well.

[The_Hater]

Charles Oakley wasn't really talented was a fake tough guy and biggest ego

Huge ego but definitely not a fake tough guy. Absolutely nobody in the league wanted to go toe to toe with Oak. He was a very strong man and he was a very bad man. Players never got in his face.

I guess he was a very bad man, you dont have to be a bad man to play fierce in basketball. However I disagree about how strong he was, there was an all star weekend back then dont recall which one, but they were making some of the guys do bench press, and he could not bench as much as some of the other dudes. Not the best gauge but still something to look at. Strong sure, but not very strong relative to many in NBA back then.

I don’t know anything about bench press and I don’t see how it matters, I just know that in all his NBA years he stood up to everyone, including a massive Shaquille O’Neal, and they pretty much all backed down. Nobody ever exchanged with him. And this was the era when players would actually throw down. Oak was not a fake tough guy, he was the last player in the league anyone wanted to meet in an alley.

I specifically remember him standing up to Barkley during an incident, who was obviously quite huge himself. And CB wanted absolutely nothing to do with Oak and immediately backed away.

[The_Hater]

If we’re going to mention star players too, Kyrie needs to be included. His level of self entitlement is something I’ve never seen before in the NBA.

Pierce and Shaq have unfortunately both taken their extra large egos to the broadcast booth with very negative results.

Kyrie is one of the most talented players the league has ever seen.

Whatever you think about his ego there have got to be some players with swelled heads nowhere near his level of ability.

Derek Coleman was a headcase but undeniably talented as well.

Kyrie is very talented, but he’s still not nearly as good as he thinks either. Which was my point. Cavs and Celtic fans figured it out in time but Nets fans are still in the defend Kyrie mode.

Amd that obvious sense of entitlement, ‘I’m a superstar so I’m just going to take the next few games off’ and multiple other examples all go back to his inflated ego. He thinks he’s better than everyone else both as a player and as a person. He’s a narcissist.

[Sgt Major]

Hezonja. When he played in Barcelona, journalists asks if he went to Camp Nou to see Messi and he replied: "No, did Messi came to see me play?"

Complete idiot.

[gottamakeit]

i'd like to nominate Sasha Vujačić & Mario Chalmers.
I'd also like to nominate them for the most punchable faces

[drchaos]

Kyrie is very talented, but he’s still not nearly as good as he thinks either.

He might just be that good.

Let's see what he does in the post season this year before we pass judgement.