Basketball is a physically demanding sport. It’s not unusual for tempers to flare up and result in fights. What’s rare, though, are goons around the NBA. While there are plenty of hotheads in league history, others stand out because of their unusual antics on and off the court.
In today’s list, we will select the top 10 biggest goons in NBA history.
Who are the biggest goons in the NBA?
Ron Artest
While he made strides to become a better human in the latter part of his NBA career, there’s no doubt in our minds that Ron Artest was once one of the biggest goons in the league’s history.
Before he renamed himself as Metta World Peace(Metta Sandiford-Artest now) in 2011, Artest was a hothead on the court, especially during his time with the Indiana Pacers. He was not a typical trash-talker per se, but he’d irked opposing teams with his extremely physical plays that sit outside the basketball norm.
Remember the infamous Malice at the Palace in 2004? That was a huge black eye for the league. In the aftermath of the Pistons-Pacers brawl, he was suspended for 86 games without pay.
Maurice Lucas
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If we talk about NBA enforcers, aka the ones who ignite a fight, Lucas’s name should be near the top of the list.
A sturdy power forward in the mid-70s until the late 80s, wherever Lucas went, he was inevitably tasked with ‘roughing up’ opposing big men from other teams. This was all evident during the 1977 NBA Finals between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Philadelphia 76ers.
With Philadelphia on the verge of going 2-0 against the Blazers, Lucas instigated a brawl against Sixer Darryl Dawkins by throwing an elbow in the middle of the court. The scuffle led to a momentum shift in the series, with Portland winning four straight to capture the 1977 NBA championship.
Lucas was even featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s 1977-1978 NBA preview issue, which is crazy to think about.
Gilbert Arenas
From All-Star to one of the biggest goons in NBA history? Yes. That’s what happened to Gilbert Arenas.
It’s odd to think that Arenas had never had any troubles as an NBA player early in his career. He was a bona fide all-star, the Wizards’ superstar, for six-plus years. And then 2009 came. Arenas brought a gun to the Wizards’ locker room to confront then-teammate Javaris Crittenton over a card game.
That’s a huge no-no in league policy. The NBA was swift in its verdict, suspending Arenas indefinitely after the incident. It is sad to say that he was not the same player after the fiasco.
Dennis Rodman
Where do we even start with this one?
To be fair, before we knew what he’s like today, there was a time when Rodman was a good young lad, trying to etch his name in the annals of NBA history for all the right reasons.
The Dennis Rodman we are all familiar with today started in 1992. Struggles off the court pushed him to morph into a villainous version of himself. He then skipped practices, clashed with coaches and opponents, and was a certified NBA goon in the eyes of many.
He even had a book about his transition from being a good guy to one of the NBA’s notorious athletes, titled ‘Bad As I Wanna Be.’ Well…that’s a big giveaway about his overall personality, ain’t it?
Bill Laimbeer
Nobody liked Laimbeer aside from his own teammates in Detroit. Heck, even former Laker big man Kurt Rambis questioned whether Laimbeer’s parents even liked him.
He was inarguably the poster child for the ‘Bad Boys Pistons” throughout the 80s. Need to commit a brutal foul on an unsuspecting opponent? Check. Grabbing jerseys, elbowing the faces of others? Check. Instigating fights on the court? Check. Laimbeer was there to enforce it all.
Ask any fans around the league, especially fans of the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, and they’ll instantly tell you that Laimbeer is one of the biggest goons in NBA history.
He was viewed as a dirty player who would do everything to swing the momentum in favor of the Pistons. Because of his antics, the animosity for Laimbeer carried on even after his retirement.
Draymond Green
Suspensions, technicals, and kicking other players on their private parts – that’s Draymond, alright.
While Green is a huge part of the Warriors’ dynasty, his antics on the court have cost them games in the past. It’s safe to say that he doesn’t have it in his DNA to back out of a fight. Green is often seen pushing, shoving, elbowing, kicking, and trash-talking opponents whenever he’s on the court.
He’s today’s version of Dennis Rodman, minus the wild hairdos and the piercings. And he’s a little bit more emotional than Rodman, if we may add.
Charles Barkley
When we think about Sir Charles, we may be unanimous in saying that he’s a big goof who likes to run his mouth on television. While Barkley’s one of the funniest basketball analysts out there today, the same thing cannot be said during his heyday as an NBA player.
During Chuck’s basketball playing days, he was mean on and off the court. He instigated fist fights, body slammed opponents, spat on a fan, got involved in bar fights, and allegedly threw a man off a glass window in a bar.
He was a hothead, for sure. If social media were alive back then, Barkley would be considered one nasty NBA goon. He’s lucky because there were no phone cameras in that era.
Stephen Jackson
2003 was the peak of Stephen Jackson’s career. Before reaching the NBA plateau, Jackson had to hone his game overseas. As an unheralded player, it’s no surprise that Jackson developed a hardened attitude on and off the court. He had to grind his way to an NBA roster, after all.
Technicals are the norm for Jackson. He did not shy away from physicality either.
After winning a title with the Spurs in ‘03, Jackson signed with the Pacers and was a huge part of the ‘Malice at the Palace’ brawl. In 2007, he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of criminal recklessness for firing a gun outside an Indiana strip club.
After he retired, Jackson proudly admitted to smoking throughout his career. To this day, he continues to spew hate towards his former teammates and current players.
Isaiah Stewart
As the youngest player on this list, fans often wonder if basketball is truly Stewart’s calling. One quick look at this perceived ‘highlight‘ gives a clear picture that he’s one of the NBA’s biggest goons.
And no, he doesn’t care if he’s up against superstars or average players like him – he’ll rough anybody up when he’s irked. At 6’8 and 250 pounds, Stewart is a hard man to stop whenever he’s angry. Even LeBron James witnessed Stewart’s outbursts firsthand when the Lakers visited Detroit in November 2021.
Stewart acts like a goon if things don’t go his way on an NBA court. It’s as simple as that.
If basketball wasn’t an option, Stewart should have tried boxing, mixed martial arts, or the NFL.
Ja Morant
Despite repeated suspensions, it’s amusing to see Ja Morant continuing to defy or work around the NBA’s warnings when it comes to his antics on and off the court.
After a stellar start to his NBA career, Morant’s stardom went way above his head. He brandished a gun at a nightclub in Denver via Instagram Live and allegedly punched a 17-year-old during a pickup basketball game.
The league suspended Morant for his actions, but his antics did not stop there. Morant’s gun-pointing gestures after a made basket warranted a fine from the league, and he was told to stop doing it.
Morant found a new celebration, though. He seemingly carries a big assault rifle or throws a grenade at the crowd whenever he hits a good shot on the court. Realizing Morant’s continued popularity, the NBA is mum for now about Morant’s newfound ways to celebrate a basket.
But will Morant change his ever-controversial ways? That’s a question for another day.
