When NBA Trash-Talking Goes Wrong

Lance Stephenson is the latest player to pay for his words.

LeBron James Makes Lance Stephenson Pay - Taking shots at the King can backfire. Just ask Lance Stephenson. After the Indiana Pacers fell to the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday night, Stephenson took the time to trash talk LeBron James. "To me, I think it's a sign of weakness because he never used to say nothing," Stephenson told reporters Sunday of James beginning to exchange words with him on the court. Listening to Stephenson’s comments, James responded by having 32 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a 102-90 Game 4 win. The Heat now own a commanding 3-1 series lead. "I was trying to get into his head, but I guess he stepped up and got the win," Stephenson told reporters. You guessed right, Lance. Can you say when trash talking goes wrong? And Stephenson is far from the only one to flap his gums only to feel the he...
DeShawn Stevenson and LeBron James - Before Lance Stephenson ever tried to put the full-court press on LeBron James, there was DeShawn Stevenson. Playing with the Washington Wizards in 2008, Stevenson called James “overrated” and proceeded to throw up the Jay-Z Roc-A-Fella diamond before making a throat-slashing gesture in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference first round series against James’s Cleveland Cavaliers. The gesture was a response to Hov's own diss track made against Stevenson on behalf of LeBron. Undeterred by all of Stevenson's actions, King James would lead his Cavs to a convincing 4-2 series win over the Wizards that year. Stevenson would exact revenge. As a member of the Dallas Mavericks, he would later serve as a role player in defeating James’s Miami Heat in the 2010-11 NBA Finals. (Photos from Left: Drew Hallowell/Getty Images, Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Ruben Patterson and Kobe Bryant - Former NBA player Ruben Patterson named himself the “Kobe Stopper” back when he played for the Seattle Supersonics from 1999-2001 for a few solid defensive showings against Kobe Bryant. But when Patterson, later a member of the Portland Trail Blazers, met Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers during the first round of the 2002 playoffs, the “Black Mamba” lit him up for 26 points and five assists per game in a 3-0 series sweep. Never write a check that you can’t cash. (Photos from Left: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images, Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesRon Artest and Kobe Bryant - The 2009 Western Conference Semifinals pitted Ron Artest (now Metta World Peace) and the Houston Rockets up against Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers in an ultra-physical seven-game series. When Bryant received a flagrant foul for an elbow on Artest, the New York City-bred swingman responded by saying: “I would’ve hurt Kobe way more than he hurt me. I probably would’ve knocked him out with the same force he used against me.” Bryant proceeded to knock Ron Ron and the Rockets right out the playoffs, averaging just over 25 points per game during the series. (Photos from Left: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images,Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

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LeBron James Makes Lance Stephenson Pay - Taking shots at the King can backfire. Just ask Lance Stephenson. After the Indiana Pacers fell to the Miami Heat in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday night, Stephenson took the time to trash talk LeBron James. "To me, I think it's a sign of weakness because he never used to say nothing," Stephenson told reporters Sunday of James beginning to exchange words with him on the court. Listening to Stephenson’s comments, James responded by having 32 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a 102-90 Game 4 win. The Heat now own a commanding 3-1 series lead. "I was trying to get into his head, but I guess he stepped up and got the win," Stephenson told reporters. You guessed right, Lance. Can you say when trash talking goes wrong? And Stephenson is far from the only one to flap his gums only to feel the he...

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