5 NBA Teams That Whine Too Much

When you think of a notorious whiner in the NBA, you usually think of someone like LeBron James or Tim Duncan, who made reputations for whining and displaying their unhappiness as often as they make moves to the basket.

You have players like Rasheed Wallace, with his hilarious but costly “ball don’t lie!” ejection, or Derrick Rose with his heavily penalized comments on the refs' unfair treatment of him.

The NBA is has made strides towards attempting to outlaw complaining, but we still have teams that are well known for their outrageous whining. 

The following slides show the five teams that are best known for their Hollywood antics, whatever the reason may be. Leave a comment after you’ve read and let me know if I missed anybody. 

Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics have made a name for themselves as being persistently stubborn against any and all calls against them.  

It doesn’t matter how blatant the foul is, you can bet that Garnett and Co. are going to do their best to argue the call.

That fact was evidenced in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat last season, when both the players and fans of the Celtics wouldn’t let up about the “unfair” calls that the refs were giving them.

It all started in Game One of the series, when the Celtics were slapped with a total of four technical fouls. That didn’t help stop the complaining, and it started endless conspiracy theories surrounding the NBA.

Regardless of the complaining, the Celtics still lost the battle against the Heat. The whining and arguing with the refs actually hurt them in the end, which makes the case that maybe they should just start accepting what the refs decide. 

Los Angeles Clippers

The Los Angeles Clippers have been nothing short of one of the best teams in the league this season, but their early success hasn’t stopped them from also being one of the whiniest teams in the league, starting with superstar forward, Blake Griffin.

Last season, Griffin made the following comments (via Orange County Register):

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"I’m definitely sick of taking hard hits,” he said. “There’s a point, I can’t remember what game it was, in my mind where I thought this is kind of ridiculous. I’m sick of it, but it’s going to keep on happening.

 

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Of course, it’s not like the fouls that he takes are entirely unwarranted. Any player that plays physical under the basket is sure to take hits, and Griffin is no exception. 

San Antonio Spurs

Is it just me, or does Tim Duncan really not trust referees? I say that, because there doesn’t seem to be a call that he won’t refute.

It’s not just him either, the entire team seems to thrive on trying to make the refs double guess their calls.

The above video, although a bit dated, shows my point. The refs call a foul, and the entire team complains.

It’s rather difficult to question their methods, as they have played at a consistently dominant level for the last decade or so (they’ve gone to the playoffs every year since 1997).

Still though, there’s no denying that the Spurs often enjoy a good pout. Successful or not, they’ve made the list as one of the most whiny teams in the NBA.

Los Angeles Lakers

It’s almost ironic that both teams in LA are well known for being dramatic. For the Lakers, it seems to be a lifestyle—Kobe publicly lashes out at Pau, Antawn Jamison complains at not having enough playing time, and did I hear that Dwight Howard has already hinted at an early exit?  

The LA fanbase already got their way once when Mike Brown was booted after a disappointing start to the season, and the replacement head coach, Mike D’Antoni, seems to be one losing streak away from being the next coach out of a job. 

For a city like Hollywood that thrives on drama, the Lakers have not disappointed.

Miami Heat

If there has been any team that has benefited the most from whining to the officials, it’s been the Miami Heat.

Chicago Bulls center, Joakim Noah, called them “Hollywood as hell,” but it was Charles Barkley that made the most amusing statement concerning their whining ways (via CBS Sports):

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"Listen, I like Dwyane a lot, I like LeBron a lot," Barkley said. "They're really starting to get on my last damn nerve. Listen, I've heard Dwyane say it twice, I've heard LeBron say it twice, that 'America is happy now' that the Miami Heat are losing. First of all, Dwyane, let me break it to you, you know I love you, nobody cares about the Miami Heat. The only people who hate the Miami Heat are the Cleveland Cavaliers fans. Nobody else cares about y'all. We just want you to play better and stop whining. Stop sitting at every press conference like somebody killed a family pet. It's annoying. 

 

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It’s funny because it’s true. The Heat complain about every foul that they’re called for and they take up an attitude when they feel disrespected. But hey, if it works, then it works. All I'm saying is that it’d be nice to not see LeBron’s struggle face every time he gets whistled.