7 Biggest Posers in the NBA

In the NBA, players' personalities are out on front street more so than any other professional sport in America. Because of this, people get to know each player as if they've met him, which leads to people forming opinions about their favorite basketball players.

However, one of the most interesting things about this is that very few people have actually met these people they form opinions about. That means you get a lot of people forming opinions that aren't necessarily true.

The irrational hatred of certain players has gone through the roof within the past few years. Now, I'm not talking about people hating LeBron James because he did this or that, I'm talking about the hate toward Kris Humphries because he was a part of a reality show.

What you'll usually hear about these types of players is that they come across as "fake" or they seem to be "posers"—that is, pretending to be something they aren't to fit into either their team's culture, the NBA's culture or just a certain role that will benefit them so long as they pretend to be someone they aren't.

So, as I tend to converse with people about the NBA over any other topic (yes, I am that cool), I've compiled a list of players that people tend to form a negative opinion of more than anyone else I have seen.

7. Nate Robinson

It seems that while the general public has tended to like Nate Robinson over the years for the mere fact that he could dunk at his height, die-hard basketball fans absolutely despise the little guy.

They look at him and see false toughness and a guy that tries too hard to come across as not only a likable guy, but also a good basketball player.

The opinion of Nate Robinson tends to go in waves, and as of right now he's in a down moment.

6. Paul Pierce

Outside of Boston there seems to be a large core of people who really dislike Paul Pierce, and I mean passionately dislike the man.

People claim he milks injuries and flops too much for a superstar, and he has had his moments that definitely fuel these kinds of thoughts.

One such instance was in the 2008 NBA Finals when Pierce had to be carted off in a wheelchair, only to come back a few minutes later and appear completely fine.

Sure, there was that instance, but there was another instance where he was stabbed, so I think those two should cancel each other out, but people tend to forget that.

5. Andrew Bynum

It only took one action for people to completely turn on Andrew Bynum when it comes to his reputation as a tough guy.

Last year during the second round of the playoffs as the Lakers were on the verge of getting swept by the Dallas Mavericks, Bynum came across the lane and intentionally elbowed J.J. Barea in mid-air before getting ejected and throwing his jersey off.

From then on out, Bynum was looked at as a guy who preys on those weaker and smaller than him when he gets a bit upset, leading to things like this.

4. Vince Carter

There's a new statistic I wish the league would keep track of: how many times each player needlessly winds up on the floor. If someone were to track that stat, I'm sure Vince Carter would be the active leader—possibly the all-time leader.

When Carter hits the ground, he'll roll around in pain as if he were just stabbed in the belly or just had his wrist dislocated, usually leading to a disgusted look shot his way by an opponent or a teammate.

People look at Carter heaving himself onto the ground and just see him as an unnecessarily overreactive basketball player, one of the few things that basketball fans can't stand.

3. Kris Humphries

Every bit of the opinion people have of Kris Humphries is based on his short time on whatever reality show it was that he was on with the hoard of Kardashians, whether deserved or not.

Humphries apparently came across as a colossal butthead in his days as Mr. Kardashian, and ever since then people have not let him forget about it.

Think about it: Would anyone really have an opinion on the Nets' big white dude who is a rebounding specialist that can put the biscuit in the basket with relative efficiency? 

2. Kevin Garnett

It's funny; despite his years of being a big, angry basketball player, there's nobody that you'll hear described more as a "fake tough guy" than Kevin Garnett.

It does seem Garnett tends to go on to intimidate more with his words than his actions, and on top of that, he's become much less of a physical, dominant presence in the year since Kendrick Perkins was traded away. It seems that now that he has nobody there to back him up he picks his battles more often.

Garnett has earned a reputation around the league as a guy who is a tough basketball player, but as a tough person his list of accolades is short indeed.

1. Chris Bosh

More so than any other player in the NBA, people loathe Chris Bosh, likening him to the princess of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade's kingdom (and there's an entirely different debate as to who is the real king in Miami).

For one, Bosh is viewed as a phony tough guy, though in a different way than Kevin Garnett is. Bosh come across as phony when he celebrates every other good thing he does with an over-the-top roar.

Beyond that, Bosh seems like he's trying too hard to fit in with LeBron and Wade in Miami when it seems like they are just completely different people.

Bosh is a fine basketball player and is one of the best power forwards in the NBA, but that persona he puts forth just seems to be fake more often than not. 

If you are one of those twitterers, you can follow me @JDorsey33.