The 11 Most Savage Trash Talking Lines in Sports History

12.

Talking trash is as much a part of sports as the games themselves.

Sports is an entertainment platform, and plenty of athletes love to extend that entertainment beyond the field. Whether it’s Muhammad Ali declaring himself the "Greatest of all time" or some random player on the Steelers guaranteeing a win against the undefeated Patriots (which did happen), trash talk always provides an extra element.

And sometimes, people take things a little…too far. Athletes are a competitive bunch, and a lot of that reflects in their feuds. They don’t always use the cookie-cutter language they do on the Nike commercials, so things can get a bit contentious. Some of these lines are funny, some are lyrically crafted, and others are just plain mean.

Different feuds may come and go, but some of these lines are just immortal. So with that said, here the 11 most savage trash talking lines in sports history.

11.Mike Tyson's diabolical boast.

Spoken about: Lennox Lewis

Line: "I will eat your children."

Tyson went after Lennox Lewis in the aftermath of his 2000 knockout win against Lou Savarese. Given Tyson’s reputation and history, it’s hard to tell if he was being serious or not.

When Lewis and Tyson actually fought in 2002, Lewis won in a knockout. So much for eating his children.

10.Kevin Garnett (allegedly) went there with Charlie Villanueva.

Spoken to: Charlie Villanueva

Line: “Cancer patient.”

Garnett allegedly crossed the line by a lightyear here.

After a Celtics-Pistons game in 2010, Charlie Villanueva alleged that Garnett called him a “cancer patient.” Villanueva suffers from alopecia universalis, a disease that makes him unable to grow hair. Garnett denied having called him a cancer patient, and issued the following statement:

"I am aware there was a major miscommunication regarding something I said on the court last night. My comment to Charlie Villanueva was in fact: You are cancerous to your team and our league. I would never be insensitive to the brave struggle that cancer patients endure. I have lost loved ones to this deadly disease and have a family member currently undergoing treatment. I would never say anything that distasteful. The game of life is far bigger than the game of basketball."

Even if Garnett was telling the truth, why would you even use the word “cancer” with someone like Villanueva?

9.Shaq Flames the Sacramento Queens.

Spoken to: Sacramento Kings

Line: “I’m not too worried about the Sacramento Queens.”

Shaq made this infamous jab before the start of the 2002-03 season, at the height of the teams’ rivalry and right after their classic Western Conference Finals. This clip will play on any given highlight real of Shaq’s colorful commentary over the years, and stands as one of the funniest jabs at a team in recent memory.

But the “Sacramento Queens” comment could never happen today. First off, this term would probably be declared problematic and set off a social-media firestorm. But more importantly, the Kings are too irrelevant to even be trash talked now. They’re in dead last in the West and haven’t made the playoffs since 2006. Nobody cares about them enough to diss them.

Shaq, who is now a part-owner of the Kings, has since apologized for making this statement. But I’m sure he hopes his team is relevant enough to be trash talked again someday soon.

8.DeShawn Stevenson pulls on Superman's cape.

Spoken to: DeShawn Stevenson

Line: “It's almost like Jay Z saying something bad about Soulja Boy.”

Just after DeShawn Stevenson’s Wizards faced LeBron’s Cavs in March of 2008, the journeyman called James “overrated.” To which LeBron refused to respond, saying doing so would be “almost like Jay Z saying something bad about Soulja Boy.”

Ouch.

This accurate appraisal prompted Soulja Boy to hit back—showing up to D.C. the next time the teams faced off—in a Stevenson jersey. This was back when the “Crank That” dance was still a thing, so it was kind of a big deal. The Cavs beat the Wizards in six games in that season’s playoffs, so LeBron got the last laugh.

Also counting against Stevenson in this beef is the fact that LeBron is still the NBA’s best player, and Stevenson hasn’t played in the Association since 2013.

7.Terrell Owens rips his quarterbacks.

Spoken to: Jeff Garcia, Donovan McNabb, and Tony Romo

Line: A lot.

The point of trash talk is usually to attack an opposing team. Terrell Owens must not have gotten that memo.

Owens was hardly a locker room favorite during his 15 NFL seasons, and nobody apparently knew this better than Owens’ quarterbacks. He repeatedly ripped his ex-49ers teammate Jeff Garcia in several interviews following Owens’ trade to the Eagles, and even went so far as to imply Garcia was gay in one of them.

Things were even more tumultuous in Philly. Owens said in 2005 that the team would be better off with Brett Favre as his quarterback—a major dig at Donovan McNabb. The two famously fell out that season, and Owens’ locker room reputation was so toxic that he was suspended by the team indefinitely just seven games into the 2005 season. This came despite the fact that T.O. had 763 yards receiving at that point.

And the same story took place in Dallas. Things looked like they might work out between Owens and Tony Romo when T.O. levied an infamously-tearful defense of his quarterback. But after three seasons, he reportedly believed Romo and Jason Witten were meeting privately to exclude Owens from plays, and was considered a locker room cancer again.

6.Conor McGregor with the ultimate educational burn.

Spoken about: Floyd Mayweather

Line: "You can’t even read."

Conor went there.

Whenever Floyd Mayweather’s around, there are always two elephants in the room: 1) His detestable history of domestic violence, and 2) his ability (or lack thereof) to read.

Mayweather’s literacy has long been the topic of speculation. 50 Cent deserves an honorable mention on this list for his Ice Bucket Challenge message to Floyd, when he offered the boxer $750,000 to a charity of his choice if he could read a page out of a Harry Potter book without messing up. To troll him even further, he later said the offer would still stand if he could read “Cat in the Hat.”

After that, this video of him struggling to read an ad on “The Breakfast Club” went viral. Mayweather insists that he can read, for the record, but his inability to read that ad didn’t exactly instill public confidence in his literacy.

And a few years later, McGregor called him out on his alleged illiteracy. Great.

5.Richard Sherman doesn't waste any words.

Spoken to: Michael Crabtree

Line: “I’m the best corner in the game.”

Sherman shut Crabtree up real quick after breaking up the 49ers’ final pass of the game in the endzone. And he put the nail into Crabtree’s coffin with this legendary post-game interview.

At least nobody snatched Crabtree’s chain here, though.

4.Bill Belichick doesn't have time for mouthy wide receivers.

Spoken about: Freddie Mitchell

Line: "All he does is talk. He's terrible, and you can print that. I was happy when he was in the game.”

Remember Freddie Mitchell?

“FredEx” was drafted by the Eagles in the first round back in 2001, and never came anywhere close to living up to that hype. Mitchell never eclipsed 500 yards receiving in any season. But that didn’t stop him from trash talking like a star.

Prior to Super Bowl XXXIX in 2004, Mitchell jokingly claimed to not know who anyone in the Patriots’ secondary was, and said he “had something” for then-safety Rodney Harrison. These were typical Mitchell antics—he was basically Terrell Owens without the skill.

And Mitchell’s on-field performance was as predictable as his off-field performance: He finished the Super Bowl with just one catch.

Then, Belichick gave his appraisal. The Patriots coach rarely speaks his mind, but given how great his take was here, perhaps he should do it more.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering what happened to Freddie MItchell: He recently served time in prison for tax fraud, and inexplicably appeared on “Tucker Carlson Tonight” to debate national anthem protests. Some life Mitchell has had.

3.Michael Jordan's (alleged) sick burn.

Spoken about: Muggsy Bogues

Line: "Shoot it you fucking midget."

This is one in unconfirmed, coming from a friend-of-a-friend who apparently went to dinner with former Bulls and Hornets assistant coach Johnny Bach. An anonymous tipster sent a few interesting anecdotes from this alleged dinner to Deadspin a while back. Here’s the bit about how Michael Jordan allegedly ruined Muggsy Bogues’ career:

“When Johnny was coaching with the Hornets in 1995 they had a good team. Glen Rice, [Alonzo] Mourning, [Larry] Johnson. Series was tied at 2 and Hornets had a chance to win game 5 in Chicago. On the biggest possession of the game, Mugsy had the ball with the Hornets down 1. Jordan backed off of him and told him: “shoot it you fucking midget.” Mugsy shot it, didn’t come close. A year later Mugsy actually told Johnny Bach that he believes that single play ruined his career. His shot never recovered.”

It’s worth noting that the Bulls defeated the Hornets in four games in 1995, so the series was never tied at two. But Bogues did miss a shot over Jordan late in a tie game in that series:

Whether or not Jordan said this, Bogues’ career fell off a cliff after 1995, as he never averaged double-figures again—as he had done in the three previous seasons.

2.Scottie Pippen verbally dunks on The Mailman.

Spoken about: Karl Malone

Line: "Just remember, the mailman doesn't deliver on Sundays, Karl."

Although Jordan was the Bulls’ trash talk king, Scottie Pippen delivered the franchise’s greatest line.

Karl Malone was fouled with nine seconds left in a tied Game 1 of the 1997 NBA Finals. As The Mailman went to the line, Pippen quietly said the above to Malone (the game was played on a Sunday). He missed both free throws, and the Bulls won the game in the ensuing seconds.

Malone is arguably the greatest NBA player to not win a championship, but who knows how things may have changed had he hit these free throws to win his first-ever NBA Finals game?

1.Muhammad Ali put the world on notice.

Spoken to: Just about everyone

Line: Too many to name

No mention of trash talk can be complete without mention of Muhammad Ali.

Ali practically invented the genre, coming onto the scene as the bodacious Cassius Clay in the early 1960s. Before Ali, athlete interviews were formal, cordial, and boring. Ali changed all of that with his elite out-of-ring talk—which was rivaled only by his in-ring dominance.