The Biggest Headcases in NBA History

The NBA is full of interesting characters, and throughout its history some of its signature players have also been some of its most unique personalities. However, that is not to say that these personalities are all good. For every polished and personable player like Magic Johnson, there is an absolute nut job like Dennis Rodman or Latrell Sprewell. But who are the craziest of the crazy? It’s not just enough to get a couple ejections a season. You’ve got to charge into the stands to fight fans, bring guns into the locker room, or get involved in a sexual harassment lawsuit against your team. In light of the never-ending saga of J.R. Smith and the New York Knicks, here are the Biggest Headcases in NBA History.

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16. DeMarcus Cousins

Years: 2010-Present
Team: Kings

When he's on top of his game, the Kings forward/center is one of the best big men in the NBA. He's physically imposing. He knows how to bang on the boards and finish at the rim. And above all else, he's got tons of talent and still hasn't fully reached his potential. The trouble, of course, is that too often Cousins does really dumb things both on and off the court that overshadow his game. For instance, back in December 2012, he got suspended for "unprofessional behavior and conduct detrimental to the team" after he got into a heated argument with then-Kings coach Keith Smart at halftime of a game.

He also got suspended by the league one month earlier for confronting Spurs announcer Sean Elliott in what the NBA determined to be a "hostile manner." And last season, he was ejected from four of the 75 games that he played in for Sacramento. If he could just learn to channel his energy on the court and turn the negatives into positives, he would routinely be mentioned amongst the NBA's best big men. But instead, he continues to sabotage himself with his bizarre behavior.

15. Jason Williams

Years: 1998-2011
Teams: Kings, Grizzlies, Heat, Magic

Williams had a history of being a headcase before he entered the league. He had been kicked off the Florida Gators team in 1998 after testing positive for marijuana on two occasions. So despite being one of the most popular and productive players on the team, Williams was traded by the Kings to the Grizzlies in 2001. In Memphis, he would have the most productive seasons averaging 11.9 points and 7.2 assists per game over five seasons with the Grizzlies. Those years weren't without more controversy, though. After the Grizzlies were swept by the Suns in the first round of the 2005 playoffs, Commercial Appeal writer Geoff Calkins had his pen snatched by Williams, who then barked, "You ain’t writin’ nothing, homeboy! You ain’t writin’ nothing!”

Williams was restrained by Mike Miller. Unsurprisingly Calkins' column was very critical of the team and specifically Williams. It also featured the classic quote, "I'm happy. I go home and see my kids and my wife and I'm OK. All of this [stuff] is secondary to me." White Chocolate would play in a few more seasons and even win a championship with the Heat in 2006. Through the ups and downs, he never changed.

14. Allen Iverson

Years: 1996-2010
Team: 76ers, Nuggets, Pistons, Grizzlies

You might be an NBA headcase if…A section of your Wikipedia page—and an entire segment of your NBA career—is labeled "Disappointment and frustration." And AI has one of those. It refers to the portion of his career that started in 2003 and ended in 2006 and involved him having multiple run-ins with Sixers head coaches. He was suspended for missing practices on several occasions during that time period, skipped a game once without telling anyone, and even refused to play in another game because he said he felt "insulted" when Sixers' interim coach Chris Ford asked him to come off the bench before a game during the 2003-04 season to work his way back into the lineup following an injury.

And sadly, those weren't the only years that AI acted like a headcase. There was also the time he went on his now-infamous "Practice?!" rant, the time he ripped referee Steve Javie in 2007 for "calling the game personal" and targeting him specifically, the time he let it be known that he did not want to come off the bench for the Grizzlies, and…well, you get the point. There's no denying that AI was a great player. But he also made far too many headlines for things other than being great during his NBA career.

13. Rasheed Wallace

Years: 1995-2013
Teams: Bullets, Trail Blazers, Hawks, Pistons, Celtics, Knicks

Rasheed Wallace's cries of "Ball don't lie!" can still be heard resounding through arenas across the league, even though he has hung up his sneakers as an active player. The now-assistant coach for the Pistons had a very colorful NBA career in which he became the poster child for the infamous "Jail Blazers" of the early 2000s, set the record for most technical fouls in a season twice, and (perhaps clairvoyantly?) threatened referee Tim Donaghy in the parking lot after a game. Wallace was a classic case of the player you loved when he was on your team, but hated when he was on any other. While he didn't always hustle or show up in shape, there's no questioning that he had talent and was a gifted player in the post when he wanted to be.

12. Gilbert Arenas

Years: 2001-2012
Team: Warriors, Wizards, Magic, Grizzlies

During his early years with the Wizards—he signed with Washington after spending the first three seasons of his career with Golden State—Arenas was one of the most fun players in the league to watch. He put up points in bunches, yelled "HIBACHI!" when he heated up, and was one of the biggest personalities in the NBA. But things changed at the end of the 2006-07 season when he suffered the first of a string of devastating knee injuries.

In April 2008, he stormed out of the locker room before a game when a doctor refused to clear him for action. In December 2009, he brought four guns into the locker room at the Verizon Center, stored them in his locker, and jokingly threatened his teammate Javaris Crittenton with them. And a few days after Arenas admitted to having the guns, he joked about the incident on the court with his teammates by pointing his "finger guns" in the air during a huddle. He was suspended for the remainder of the season a few weeks later and, truthfully, his career was never really the same after that. He's still thinking about making a comeback this season, but it's clear that Arenas will never be the Arenas of old.

11. Andrew Bynum

Years: 2005-Present
Teams: Lakers, Cavaliers

For someone who is still just 26, it feels like Andrew Bynum has already lived a lifetime's worth of controversial incidents. After throwing elbows at Shaq as a rookie, then being publicly slammed by Kobe Bryant after his second season, Bynum battled injuries for several years but continued to flash serious potential. Unfortunately, he also showed a crazy side that did nothing to help his career. For instance, he violently clotheslined diminutive Mavericks' point guard J.J. Barea as the Lakers were being blown out in the 2011 playoffs. He reinjured his knee—while bowling!—in November 2012 when he was supposed to be rehabbing it. And with the Cavs this year, he was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team, traded to Chicago, and immediately released. While he'll undoubtedly latch on to another team this season, he may very well be done as an effective NBA player. And he's only 26.

10. Latrell Sprewell

Years: 1992-2005
Teams: Warriors, Knicks, Timberwolves

Athletes frequently disagree with their coaches. Both parties tend to be confident and headstrong, so it's a pretty normal thing that happens during the course of a professional season. But Sprewell took it to the next level when he choked and then threatened to kill coach P.J. Carlesimo. And really, that was just one of the many memorable incidents in Spree's NBA career. He also failed to report a broken hand to the Knicks prior to the 2002 season, an oversight for which they fined him $250,000, and just two years later, he declined a three-year, $21 million contract from the Timberwolves under the premise that he had "a family to feed." Not unsurprisingly, he has encountered his fair share of financial issues since his playing days ended.

9. Stephon Marbury

Years: 1996-2009
Teams: Timberwolves, Nets, Suns, Knicks, Celtics

There was a time where Stephon Marbury was considered one of the top players in the NBA. Unfortunately, the former Coney Island hero's career began to unravel once he returned back home to play for the Knicks. While Marbury had always been a bit prickly and even picked up a DUI while playing with Phoenix, it was something about Larry Brown and Isiah Thomas that made the point guard go completely off the deep end. While in New York, he managed to have an affair with his personal chef, become embroiled in the Anucha Browne Sanders sexual harassment lawsuit against the Knicks, and eventually was such a useless and poisonous player that the team simply paid him not to show up. He has since found a home playing in China, though, where he's been since 2010.

8. J.R. Smith

Years: 2004-Present
Teams: Nuggets, Knicks

Just thinking about J.R. Smith is enough to make a Knicks fan tear his or her hair out. The reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year has spent his entire career finding new and creative ways to waste his talent, getting involved in all kinds of trouble both on and off the court. Most seriously, he was the driver in a 2007 crash that killed one of his friends. He also was a principal member of the Knicks/Nuggets 2006 brawl at Madison Square Garden, has paid over $100,000 in fines since 2011 alone, and, most recently, was benched by his team for ignoring his coach's request that he stop trying to untie his opponents' shoelaces (no, seriously). After signing a three-year, $18 million deal with the Knicks, though, Smith isn't going anywhere.

7. Delonte West

Years: 2004-2012
Teams: Celtics, SuperSonics, Cavs, Celtics, Mavericks

Delonte West had a promising start to his NBA career, earning solid minutes for the Celtics as a rookie and participating in the Rookie/Sophomore game his second year in the league. However, in 2009, things started to go wrong for the promising guard. In mid-September, West was riding a three-wheeled motorcycle and was pulled over for a routine traffic violation. Unfortunately, he had a guitar case strapped to him that was loaded with a rash of guns and ammunition. During the playoffs that same season, an unsubstantiated rumor began to circulate about West and a certain famous Cleveland Cavalier player's mother, which West himself has said has hurt his career. And he has also been diagnosed with and treated for bipolar disorder and is now plying his trade in China.

6. Vernon Maxwell

Years: 1988-2001
Teams: Spurs, Rockets, 76ers, Magic, Hornets, Kings, SupersSonics, Mavericks

Intensity can be a double-edged sword for many athletes. When it's controlled and focused, it can bring out the best in some players. But when it festers into a rage-filled outburst, it brings out the worst. Vernon Maxwell displayed both sides on numerous occasions throughout his career. Mad Max played a key part in Houston's 1993-94 title run, putting up 13 points and 4.2 assists per game in the playoffs.

However, his most infamous moment came during the next season when, during a game against the Trail Blazers, he ran into the stands and punched a fan in the face. He later claimed that the fan was making fun of his wife's recent miscarriage. Maxwell received a 10-game suspension and a $20,000 fine as punishment for the incident. And a few months later during the playoffs, Maxwell faked a hamstring injury because he was unhappy with his lack of minutes. So despite picking up another ring, the Rockets released Maxwell at the beginning of the offseason.

5. Chris Washburn

Years: 1986-1988
Teams: Warriors, Hawks

Don't do drugs, kids. When it comes to explicit drug use ruining the lives and careers of NBA players, no class is more infamous than that of the 1986 Draft. Everyone remembers (or has heard of) Len Bias overdosing only two days after the draft, but some might not know about how drugs hampered the careers of a few other top picks from the 1986 class. None more than Chris Washburn. The third-overall pick developed a cocaine addiction problem almost immediately after beginning his rookie season with the Golden State Warriors.

Veteran center Joe Barry Carroll came in to mentor Washburn but to no avail. He would show up just before tip-off on game nights and showed up late or not at all to practices. Midway through his second year, he was traded to the Hawks, and a year after that he was out of the league altogether. In two seasons, he played in just 72 games. His dismal averages of just 9 minutes, 3.1 points, and 1.9 rebounds per game and short stint in the league make him one of the biggest busts in NBA Draft history.

4. Ron Artest

Years: 1999-Present
Teams: Bulls, Pacers, Kings, Rockets, Lakers, Knicks

The torch-bearer of crazy in the modern era has to be Ron Artest, now known (at least legally) as Metta World Peace. Of course, his signature moment will always be the Malice at the Palace, but really, it doesn't do him justice to only talk about that one incident. The man wanted to take time off from the NBA to work on his rap career, has thrown wild on-court elbows at a whole host of players ranging from Manu Ginobili in the 2006 Playoffs to James Harden in 2012. And while with the Rockets in 2009, he reportedly ran onto the final team bus to their Game 7 playoff matchup with the Lakers wearing only his underwear. While his career is winding down and it's probably time to start looking for the next big thing, Artest has secured his spot as a first-ballot Crazy Hall of Famer.

3. Dennis Rodman

Years: 1986-2000
Teams: Pistons, Spurs, Bulls, Mavericks

All hail the king. With his ever-changing hair color and bizarre antics both on and off the court, it's unlikely anyone will ever take the headcase crown from Dennis Rodman. There were harmless things like the pink hair or wearing a wedding dress to promote his 1996 autobiography. But there were also more malicious incidents where he spat on a ref and kicked a cameraman in the groin. Even in retirement, Rodman has managed to out-crazy anybody who has considered coming after his title. His "friend for life" Kim Jong-un is one of the world's craziest dictators, and yet, "The Worm" continues to steadfastly defend him at every turn.

2. Isaiah Rider

Years: 1993-2001
Teams: Timberwolves, Blazers, Hawks, Lakers, Nuggets

By the end of his rookie season, it seemed as though Isaiah Rider would have a long and promising career. During the 1993-94 season, Rider won the Slam Dunk Contest and was named to the All-Rookie 1st Team while averaging 16 points per game. He would also go on to be one of the league's most consistent scorers, averaging 18.9 points per fame and posting a .448 field goal percentage over the next four seasons.

Though he excelled on the court, behavioral issues started in his sophomore season when he began feuding with Minnesota coach Bill Blair to the point where the team had to suspend Rider in December. During his time in Minnesota, Rider was also convicted of kicking the female manager of a sports bar and charged with marijuana possession. He was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers in 1996 where he racked up more dubious acts, such as spitting on a fan in Detroit, which earned him a $10,000 fine and a three-game suspension.

But one of his most tumultuous seasons came in his one year with the Atlanta Hawks. Though he averaged 19 points per game, he had no chemistry with his teammates and infamously said he felt "betrayed" by them and team general manager Pete Babcock for informing the league of his marijuana use. Rider even said he'd "have his boys take [Dikembe Mutombo] out" during All-Star weekend in his hometown of Oakland. SMH. Rider was released at the end of the season.

He'd win a ring with the Lakers in 2001 despite being left off the playoff roster. But by 2002, he was out of the league altogether. That didn't stop the East Bay baller from racking up more arrests, though, as in 2007 he was sentenced to seven months in jail after pleading guilty to drug and battery charges.

1. "Fast" Eddie Johnson

Years: 1977-1987
Teams: Hawks, Cavs, SuperSonics

"Fast" Eddie Johnson isn't just a "headcase" by NBA standards. He's also a sick individual by even the most extreme measures. It's not that Johnson was lazy, he averaged 15 points per game during his career and was named to two All-Star teams. However, his cocaine addition, subsequent suspensions, and eventual banishment from the NBA in 1987 sent his life into a tailspin that he would never recover from. While awaiting trial for allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman, Johnson was arrested for sexual battery and molestation of an eight-year-old girl in 2006. And he was eventually convicted and given a life sentence without the possibility of parole.