by Will Laws

NBA Players with the Worst Tempers

PointAfter analyzed foul data to see which NBA players rack up the most technical and flagrant fouls per game. You don't want to run into these guys in a dark alley.

Just about everyone loses their cool once in a while. That's especially true for professional athletes, who are some of the most competitive human beings on the planet. Though the NBA doesn't feature nearly as much violent contact as the NFL, basketball is a physically demanding game that involves a lot of banging bodies and clashing egos at the professional level. That's a formula for drawing out some pretty terrifying displays of anger.

In the NBA, there are essentially two ways for referees to punish players acting out: technical fouls and flagrant fouls. Technicals are often doled out to players engaging in unsportsmanlike conduct, such as arguing with referees or taunting opponents. Flagrant fouls are called on players who commit "unnecessary and excessive contact" against opponents, according to the NBA rule book.

Both types of fouls represent instances where anger or carelessness prevails over cooler heads. To determine which players the stats say have the worst tempers on the court, PointAfter calculated which guys have averaged the most combined technical and flagrant fouls per game dating back to the 2013-14 season, then found an example of an outburst for each player on YouTube.

Each of the 30 players listed average at least one technical or flagrant foul per 10 games. As you'll see, it's not a good idea to get on the wrong side of these towering NBA bad boys.

#30. Josh Smith

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.100
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 20
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

 

#29. Carmelo Anthony

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.100
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 17
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

 

#28. Hassan Whiteside

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.102
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 9
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 2

 

#27. Jusuf Nurkic

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.106
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 6
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

 

#26. Kenneth Faried

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.106
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 20
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

#25. Andre Drummond

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.107
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 22
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

#24. P.J. Tucker

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.110
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 25
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 0

 

#23. Marcus Morris

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.112
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 24
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 2

 

#22. Nick Young

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.113
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 15
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

 

#21. Patrick Beverley

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.117
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 20
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 0

#20. Spencer Hawes

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.125
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 23
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 2

 

#19. Joakim Noah

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.125
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 22
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 0

 

#18. Amar'e Stoudemire

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.127
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 21
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 0

#17. Chris Paul

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.130
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 24
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

#16. Lance Stephenson

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.132
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 24
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 2

 

#15. Isaiah Thomas

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.134
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 27
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

 

#14. DeAndre Jordan

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.134
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 27
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 4

 

#13. Kendrick Perkins

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.136
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 17
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 4

#12. Kyle Lowry

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.138
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 27
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

#11. Draymond Green

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.148
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 31
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 3

#10. O.J. Mayo

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.152
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 21
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 4

 

#9. Tyson Chandler

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.154
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 25
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 4

#8. Kevin Durant

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.158
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 26
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

 

#7. Matt Barnes

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.163
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 26
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 7

 

#6. Kevin Garnett

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.173
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 23
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

#5. Russell Westbrook

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.180
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 32
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

 

#4. Markieff Morris

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.184
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 36
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 4

 

#3. Dwight Howard

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.211
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 31
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 5

#2. Blake Griffin

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.226
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 39
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 1

#1. DeMarcus Cousins

Technical/Flagrant fouls per game: 0.243
Technical fouls in past three seasons: 46
Flagrant fouls in past three seasons: 0

Article: Courtesy Point After

NBA Basketball: "NBA Players with the Worst Tempers"