While basketball players have to abide by the rules
and conduct themselves properly, sometimes they don’t. On the whole,
though, there are consummate professionals all over the NBA, and there
have been for decades, although some mavericks occasionally announce
themselves. Likewise, even away from the players themselves, there are
some other embarrassing stories that have cropped up over the years.
In general, fans don’t like to see these negative headlines appear, but
they occur in almost all sports. Sadly, no matter how much talent NBA
stars possess, they can still let their guards down on occasions or
simply misjudge a situation. We’ve seen it with the Premier League’s various soccer stars
and some NFL players on occasion, with embarrassing scenarios coming to
the fore at times. It should come as no surprise either. After all,
they’re still human despite being in the spotlight.
There has certainly been a strong selection of embarrassing moments in
NBA history. So, with that in mind, below we remember some of them.
The Tim Donaghy scandal
A truly horrible moment in the sport, Tim Donaghy
somehow decided to bet on the games he was officiating. Clearly going
against the league’s rules, this highly embarrassing scenario was even
linked to mobsters, with Donaghy eventually being relieved of his
duties and then sent to jail after a career that spanned 13 years in
the NBA.
Latrell Sprewell choked his coach
In 1997, Golden State Warriors guard Latrell
Sprewell was immediately suspended after it came to light that he’d
choked and punched his coach, P.J. Carlesimo. It all occurred after the
coach asked the player to put “more mustard” on his passes, only for
Sprewell to take it the wrong way and lash out in a moment of pure
madness.
Michael Jordan had his issues
Of course, while some moments in the NBA are
embarrassing, we should probably say we’ve also witnessed some sad
stories. One of them was certainly when arguably the greatest player of
all time had relationship problems, plus other notable issues. Yes,
you’ve guessed it, we’re referring to Michael Jordan here. As his
career progressed, the Bulls hero’s various problems became evident.
For his adoring fans, it was tough to witness.
Isiah Thomas and the Knicks’ relationship didn’t end well
Right now, the Knicks are flying, and many people are backing them when it comes to the 2025 NBA playoffs betting,
but things haven’t always been rosy for the team. When Isiah Thomas was
both coach and general manager, his influence really dented the Knicks’
brand after he made sexually inappropriate comments to an employee. The
marketing executive in question was understandably shaken by the
comments, resulting in the team having to pay $11.6 million in damages,
all while they seriously underachieved on the court.
Eddie Griffin crashed while watching porn
Eddie Griffin was a solid NBA player,
but he clearly had some issues to contend with away from the court.
This was exemplified further when he crashed his car in Minnesota in
2006. It wasn’t a regular crash, though. Griffin was heavily
intoxicated, he wasn’t fully dressed, and he told several passersby he
was watching porn while performing sex acts when the crash occurred.
An embarrassing moment on the court that fans of the
NBA will probably never forget, Diet Coke has never been so
destructive. The soda drink is what led to a huge brawl between the
Pistons and the Pacers taking place, as a cup of it was thrown over Ron
Artest. An ugly moment in the sport, it led to nine players receiving
146-game suspensions and achieved headlines around the world.
