The 20 Biggest Hipsters in Sports

Hipster and professional athlete. There's nothing about these two lifestyles that go together. 

A hipster is really just a nerd who discovered good music and finally got laid. They're known for skinny jeans, ridiculous haircuts and shunning popular culture in favor of more unique pursuits. (Assuming you think pounding Pabst Blue Ribbon after a long day of shopping for vintage flannel shirts is a unique endeavor.)

A hipster is really the exact opposite of the jocks you knew in high school, and aren't professional athletes—just bigger, richer jocks?

You would think that these two very different styles would naturally repel each other, and usually they do…except for when they don't. There is a growing number of athletes bucking the traditional jock thing in favor of a less traditional style. 

Here are the top 20 hipsters in sports. 

20. Maxime Talbot, Philadelphia Flyers

Style wise, Philadelphia Flyers forward Maxime Talbot is a chameleon; you really have no idea what you're going to get.

Invite this guy to a party and he could show up shirtless, wearing a viking hat, rocking a mountain man beard or he could surprise you and go full-on GQ in a suit.  

Hipster Style: More often than not though, Talbot defaults to plaid shirts or jackets and oversized glasses that he wears just for fashion reasons. The end result leaves him looking like a greasy creeper you'd go out of your way to avoid if he wasn't a professional hockey player. 

19. JaVale McGee, Washington Wizards

Is Washington Wizards center JaVale McGee a hipster or does he just know how to use a trend to call attention to himself? His "planking" photo was basically so amazing that it killed the whole thing because it couldn't be topped. On the other hand, he makes a really convincing hipster when he tries.  

Hipster Style: McGee is a sometimes hipster, and the oversized black-rimmed glasses are a dead giveaway; especially when paired with the striped shirt and almost fauxhawk. 

18. Collin Balester, Washington Nationals

Washington Nationals reliever Collin Balester is a California boy who marches to the beat of his own hipster band drummer. He lists "mustaches" as one of his interests on Facebook, and he often wears his devotion on his upper lip.   

Hipster Style: Not sure if Balester's love of mustaches is ironic (hipster) or ironically not ironic (super mega hipster). Either way though, unless you're Tom Selleck or an NHL player, a mustache equals hipster. 

17. Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics

Considering the cast of characters they've got, it's pretty difficult to stand out on the Boston Celtics. Paul Pierce is never going to be as tall and sharply dressed as Kevin Garnett, he won't be as funny or rotund as Glen Davis and he won't be as adorable as Rajon Rondo. 

So it looks like he's going for the eccentric man of mystery thing, and it works.  

Hipster Style: The giant headphones and monstrous glasses without lenses are screaming hipster here. Pierce also has a fondness or old timey suits, fedoras and the lensless glasses are a staple. 

16. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum is known for his unorthodox mechanics and his unorthodox style. Guess that's why they call him The Freak?  

Hipster Style: Lincecum really walks the line between hipster and hippie, but tends to lean more towards hipster. Big Time Timmy Jim's devotion to shoulder length, not-long-but-not-short hair, oversized sunglasses, ironic Snuggie wearing and rocking a winter knit hat year round, are just a few examples of his unique hipster style.  

15. Von Miller, Denver Broncos

Hipster sometimes has a negative connotation, but Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller makes hipster look good. Very good. 

Bonus for Miller that he was drafted by Denver; there isn't another city in the country that would embrace his awesome style with the same degree of enthusiasm.  

Hipster Style: Plaid shirt: check. Oversized glasses with the thick black rim: check. Plastic watch: check. Digs cheap beer: check. 

14. Kris Letang, Pittsburgh Penguins

Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang is a tough guy on the ice, and apparently a fashion model of some sort off the ice.  

Hipster Style: Plaid shirts with upturned cuffs, long hair (or a potentially ironic mullet), full beard, brightly colored scarves and willingness to participate in goofy fashion shows, are all defining hipster qualities. 

13. Carmelo Anthony, New York Knicks

New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony tends to alternate his hipster style with a more casual urban style; both of which suit him. He doesn't like to be tied to a single look and always seems to be switching it up. 

Hipster Style: 'Melo rocks loud patterns, bow ties and thick-rimmed glasses on the regular, making him one of the NBA's biggest hipsters. 

12. Michael Del Zotto, New York Rangers

New York City is hipster heaven and New York Rangers defenseman Michael Del Zotto must be loving life in that bespectacled, skinny jean paradise.  

Hipster Style: Goofy dayglow sunglasses, rocking two leather jackets and drinking Nattie Ice at a college party after an MGMT concert. Pretty sure that's the dictionary definition of hipster. 

11. LeBron James, Miami Heat

Like the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony, Miami Heat forward LeBron James isn't defined by one style, but he's got GQ hipster in his bag of tricks.   

Hipster Style: King James in giant glasses and a plaid scarf stamped his hipster card for life. 

10. Joey Barton, Queens Park Rangers F.C.

Apparently, Queens Park's Joey Barton is a violent ex-con, but you wouldn't know it to look at him. Barton has adopted a harmless hipster style as a way to repair his image, and it seems to be working.  

Hipster Style: Exceptionally fitted suits, Ray-Bans, a devotion to plaid and a novelty T-shirt that says, "I listen to bands that don't even exist." 

9. Joakim Noah, Chicago Bulls

Indiana Pacers point guard T.J. Ford thinks Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah is the biggest hipster in the NBA. I think he's definitely up there in the top five, and if he keeps playing beer pong with college kids, he's going to make the top of my next list.  

Hipster Style: That hair. Those suits. That smile. 

8. Sean Avery, New York Rangers

Sean Avery's career in the NHL has been somewhat of an enigma; no one seems to like him, even on his own team, and his antics on the ice have helped him build a reputation as a dirty player and agitator.  Yet the New York Rangers keep bringing him back.

Considering his perception on the ice, it's strange to learn that off of it, he is way into fashion and puts himself together in that immaculate, yet edgy, hipster way. He even interned at Vogue magazine. Avery is an enigma wrapped in a riddle.

Hipster Style: Textbook hipster; horn-rimmed glasses, and form-fitting flannel button up. He's Buddy Holly, if Holly was a jerk.

7. Dhani Jones, Retired NFL

You would think that nature would never allow hipster chic and professional football to coexist in perfect harmony. But then how does one explain Dhani Jones?

The former hard-hitting NFL linebacker is a living miracle who has found a way to make the impossible, possible.

Hipster Style: Crisp white linen shirt, comforting goatee, trademark retro-hipster glasses, and the cherry on top...a sweet bowtie. He's the cool, young professor who made you want to become a hipster.

6. Raul Meireles, Chelsea F.C.

Portugese soccer player Raul Meireles plays midfield for Chelsea F.C. and his married to his identical tattoo twin.  

Hipster Style: Meireles is doing the whole tattoo hipster thing. Tattoos used to be for tough guys, but on a skinny bald man in a striped T-shirt they somehow make him look less tough. 

5. Amar'e Stoudemire, New York Knicks

New York Knicks center Amar'e Stoudemire defines hipster chic. He can be seen rocking red carpets all over New York in his signature look.  

Hipster Style: An exceptionally tailored suit with a loud color or print, paired with the thick glasses, a bow-tie (or scarf) and some fly footwear. 

The difference between Stoudemire and most other hipsters? He makes this look good. 

4. Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns

Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash is a South African-born, Canadian NBA All-Star. Congratulations Canada, this is your hipster God. When he speaks and tells the rioting citizens of Vancouver to chill, you listen. When he wears a goofy hipster outfit, you imitate it.

Hipster Style: Michael Jackson's Moonwalker meets the Beastie Boys circa 1987; retro, subversive and just plain awesome.

3. James Harden, Oklahoma City Thunder

Oklahoma City guard James Harden is "officially" the NBA's biggest hipster. At LaMarcus Aldridge's charity game on November 6th, they asked a number of NBA players who they thought the biggest hipster in the league was and James Harden came out on top. 

The lockout seriously needs to end because these guys have too much time on their hands.  

Hipster Style: The beard alone is enough to define his hipster style. Pair that epic beard with giant glasses, a plaid shirt and/or a sweater vest, and you've really got something special. 

2. Brian Wilson, San Francisco Giants

Nothing seems less hipster than being a pitcher on a World Series Champion Major League Baseball team, but pitcher Brian Wilson has proved himself to be a man content to break the mold.

It helps that he plays in San Francisco, a city that prides itself on a history of trendsetting, counter-culture style, which happens to sit across the bay from Berkeley; California's answer to Brookland.

Hipster Style: A crazy spandex tuxedo, shades, white gloves and a giant beard...at the 2010 ESPY's.  He's cornering the "irony" end of the hipster style spectrum.

1. Baron Davis, Cleveland Cavaliers

I'm not sure how often Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Baron Davis was mentioned in the hipster discussion before showing up to the NBA lockout press conference dressed like that, but the game has now changed. 

In true hipster fashion, Davis stands out to such a degree in that photo that it actually looks like he could have been photo-shopped in.  

Hipster Style: The beard. The glasses. The knit cap indoors. And the desire to stand out like a sore thumb at every opportunity.  

Not convinced? A faux military jacket at a press conference should do the trick.