10 NBA Players Who Tarnished Their Public Image This Season

The 2011-12 NBA season gave us a handful of memorable moments, but unfortunately, some of those moments are memorable for the wrong reasons.

In a league that's star-driven and personality-powered, the players are always being watched and evaluated on and off the court. This year, there were a few players whose words or actions damaged their public image.

Whether with the press, social media or their elbows, they got themselves into trouble for all of America to see.

Here are 10 NBA players who tarnished their public image this season.

Kevin Love

Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Love had another sensational year, putting up gaudy numbers as one of the best forwards in the Western Conference.

But there was one instance of poor judgment that made him look pretty bad. His stomp on Houston Rockets forward Luis Scola's head showed a lack of sportsmanship during a heated game between the two competitors.

The NBA suspended Love for a couple games, and he soon apologized for the stomping. It might have been an isolated incident, but it was ugly enough to get our attention.

Andray Blatche

Andray Blatche's public image was already severely damaged before this season, with multiple arrests and a reputation for distractions, so this year was just continued disappointment.

The 6'11" Washington Wizards power forward/center managed to steer clear of trouble off the court in 2011-12 after his charity mission to Jamaica, but it was on the court where he got himself in trouble.

Blatche's lack of conditioning forced coach Randy Wittman to bench him indefinitely this spring.

Being out of shape isn't nearly as bad as messing around with the law, but he still let down his teammates and Wizards fans.

Carmelo Anthony

About three-quarters of the way through the New York Knicks' season, it became clear that the team was flawed both on and off the court.

Even if Carmelo Anthony wasn't actively trying to sabotage Mike D'Antoni's work in New York, he was at least making it difficult for D'Antoni to work with him.

Anthony seemed to play a significant role in Mike D'Antoni's mid-season resignation, as the two were at odds and Carmelo apparently wasn't buying in to D'Antoni's system.

'Melo's ability to win and lead a team with character are questioned now more than ever before.

Dexter Pittman

Having your teammate's back is one thing. Throwing cheap elbows at the opponents' head/neck area is another.

Miami Heat reserve center Dexter Pittman delivered a blatant cheap shot to Indiana Pacers forward Lance Stephenson in Game 5 of the second round in retaliation for Stephensen's taunt of LeBron James earlier in the series.

Pittman was suspended for three games and would log a total of one more minute of playing time for the rest of the playoffs.

He might have been patted on the back by his teammates behind the scenes for knocking Stephenson down, but those kind of actions give him a bad reputation moving forward.

Amare' Stoudemire

A postgame outburst turned into a lacerated hand for Knicks power forward Amare' Stoudemire, whose frustrations after a playoff loss to the Miami Heat compelled him to punch a fire extinguisher.

He immediately got a flood of criticism and ridicule from all sides, as fans and media wondered how he could do something so foolish at such an inopportune time.

Stoudemire came back later in the series, and the Knicks did win one game in the first-round clash with LeBron and Co.

But the Knicks' season ended soon thereafter, losing in five games to the eventual champs. The lacerated hand turned out to be a sore symbol of the franchise's disappointing finish. 

Lamar Odom

When the Los Angeles Lakers included Lamar Odom as part of their proposed trade for Chris Paul last fall, Odom was emotional and felt offended by the organization.

He then reportedly demanded a trade, and subsequently got shipped to Dallas, where his year only got worse. 

Odom drastically underachieved in his year with the Mavericks, where his effort, production and numbers were all down.

A late-season dispute with owner Mark Cuban ended up expediting his early split with the team and officially marked the season as a failure.

The 13-year veteran could be heading back to Los Angeles next season, either with the Lakers or the Clippers, and let's hope for his sake that he has a better year.

Kevin Garnett (and Rajon Rondo)

At the end of their Game 7 loss in the Eastern Conference Finals, Boston Celtics stars Kevin Garnett and Rajon Rondo left the court before the final buzzer sounded, foregoing any post-game handshakes with the Miami Heat.

This doesn't completely ruin their image, but it does reflect poor sportsmanship. They were probably just returning the favor to LeBron, who walked out on them similarly in 2010— but that doesn't make it okay.

To complete the "sore loser" theme, Garnett decided to skip the mandatory post-game media sessions, refusing to address reporters after the tough loss.

I'm sure the Celtics don't think that's an ideal representation of their franchise.

Metta World Peace

During his first couple years with the Lakers, Metta World Peace made huge strides in rebuilding his public image, winning an NBA title in 2010 and earning the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in 2011.

That rebuilt image vanished swiftly after he drilled James Harden in the head with an elbow in April.

Not only did he wallop Harden, but he lost a lot of people's respect with the way he kept running, pretending not to notice, and then coming up with questionable excuses afterward.

It's a perfect example of how one ugly incident can ruin a lot of positive work. 

Andrew Bynum

Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum had a breakout year that included stretches of dominance that put him in the conversation of "best center in the NBA."

However, his erratic behavior, intermittent disinterest in the game and overall immaturity were uninvited distractions throughout the season.

At times, Bynum was an unstoppable force who worked seamlessly in the Lakers' game plan. Other times, he was out of sync, counter-productive and not representing the team positively to the media.

He's young, in Los Angeles and playing with Kobe Bryant. But it could all be gone soon because the Lakers deem the distraction tradeable

Dwight Howard

There was a constant stream of distractions flowing from Orlando this year, with Magic star Dwight Howard being the central figure.

It seemed like he couldn't decide if he wanted to stay or go, if he wanted a trade or not, or if he was happy with the coaching and management. 

He made public his wish list of teams he'd be open to joining, and pretty much held the Orlando Magic hostage until he waived the opt-out clause in his contract just before the trade deadline.

The flip-flopping took a toll on his teammates, the front office and the fanbase. Eventually, it cost coach Stan Van Gundy and general manager Otis Smith their jobs.

The latest news: he wants to be traded to the Brooklyn Nets before the NBA draft.

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