Basketball Fiend

(Photo credit: Getty Images)

In this case “entertaining” means anything from “throws down crazy dunks on a regular basis” to “hangs out in the hotel lobby in his underwear”.

It’s an all-encompassing list.

Bonus Runner-Up: Delonte West

I’m going to level with you. I didn’t intend on having 11 players on the list. But how could I leave off Delonte? His hot sauce in my bag freestyle was so funny I nearly coughed up a lung. You can’t script comedy like that. Delonte’s KFC masterpiece was absolutely, without a doubt, my favorite video of the year. He makes the list. Period. End of discussion.

Bonus Runner-Up #2: Stephon Marbury

If you thought I was done with the bonus section, you thought wrong. There’s no way in the fiery depths of Fran Drescher inhabited hell that I’m going to leave Starbury off this list. He gave us not one, not two, but three laugh out loud comedy moments this summer. The “Put Me in a Box” video, the “I Eat Vaseline” video, and the “Ain’t Nothin’ But the Devil” video. None of them were basketball related, but who cares? They were unscripted bits of comedy genius, and I couldn’t stop watching them. Neither could my friends. Neither could my professors. (Yes, you read that right. I sent Starbury videos to my professors.) He makes the list. Deal with it.

Bonus Runner-Up #3: Brandon Jennings

If you think Jennings is on the list solely because he dropped 55 points on the Warriors, you’re wrong. He’s on the list because he dropped 55 points on the Warriors, started a feud with Ricky Rubio, made a surprise appearance on draft day, and nearly gave Herb Kohl a heart attack when a candid conversation with Joe Budden appeared on the Internet just days after the Bucks made him a lottery pick.

Jennings has toned down his antics lately - to spectacular results, he’s in the running for Rookie of the Year - but his pre-draft braggadocio was priceless; one for the record books. He’s going to be a fun player to watch, both on and off the court, for years to come.

Bonus Runner-Up #4: Nate Robinson

KryptoNate!!!!

(Okay, I’m done. I promise.)

10. Derrick Rose

Games 1, 4 and 6 of the Celtics-Bulls series. Need I say more?

9. Chris Paul

[Reason #354 not to publish an article at 5 a.m.: forgetting to leave Chris Paul off of your 10 most entertaining players list. Here's my updated version...]

Even when the Hornets are borderline awful, CP3 is fun to watch. He’s a magician with the ball. He comes up with passes other point guards wouldn’t even dream of trying, and makes his teammates roughly 200 percent better. Just ask the now-toiling Tyson Chandler.  As a byproduct of playing in New Orleans, Paul is relatively quiet off the court, but he did play an epic game of dodgeball with Jimmy Fallon over the summer. Hopefully we get to see more of his fun side in the future.

8. Kevin Durant

More dunks, more threes and a zany “Velvet Hoop” rap made 2009 a breakout year for Durant.

7. Dirk Nowitzki

The Cristal Taylor saga turned Dirk into a man possessed. After Taylor, Dirk’s ex-fiance, was arrested on charges of fraud last summer, Nowitzki went on a playoff rampage. The Mavs were eliminated in the second round by the Nuggets, but Dirk carried his killer mentality into this season. Through 26 games he’s averaging 26.9 points and 8.3 rebounds. He’s also turned into the “Dirkus Circus”, hitting clutch shots left and right. The image of Dirk as a soft Euro who fades down the stretch has been replaced with Dirk: the Charles Bronson of the NBA. Now I like Dirk. Which is saying something because I used to really dislike the guy.

6. Dwyane Wade

This shot has a lot to do with Wade’s ranking. Not because it was the best game-winning shot of the year (that honor goes to LBJ), but because it represents Wade’s ability to shift into DWDM (Dwyane Wade Destruction Mode) and obliterate everything in his path. Yes, touch fouls that probably shouldn’t be called are a result of DWDM, but so are insane buzzer-beaters and how did he do that? feats of athleticism. So don’t bring any of that anti-Wade B.S. into my kitchen. I’ll fry it up and serve it back to you with a side of hashbrowns.

5. Steve Nash

Nash makes impossible passes and sees the court better than anyone I’ve watched play the game. Those skills were wasted last season as Shaq clogged the middle and Terry Porter schemed stupid, hair-brained schemes. Now everything is back to normal. Alvin Gentry allows Nash to do his thing. And Nash’s thing is a thing of beauty.

The Suns are playing exciting basketball again and the Canadian ubermench (yeah, that’s right, I just said “superman” in German) is enjoying arguably the best season of his career. Which is saying something because he’s won two MVP awards. Nash was also responsible for two funny-as-hell videos in 2009: the Vitamin Water infomercial spoof, and the Letterman playoff correspondence piece, elevating him above other players on this list.

Basically, he’s the man.

4. Kobe Bryant

Any props I give to Kobe, I give grudgingly. With that said, last season he changed his ways, learned something about teamwork, and won a championship because of it. That made him more entertaining to watch from my perspective. It’s difficult to dislike a player when he changes the things about himself that you disliked in the first place.

So, yeah, I give grudging respect to Kobe. In particular for the post moves he added to his repertoire this season. I’m a fan of the the way he keeps evolving his game.

I’m also a fan of the nearly impossible game-winning three Kobe hit over Dwyane Wade recently.

3. LeBron James

Love him or hate him, LeBron is the most physically gifted player in the league. Last season he put those skills to good use, winning his first MVP award and hitting a career-defining (to this point), game-winning three against Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals.

After that, things unraveled fast. The Cavaliers fell apart, losing to the Magic in six games. Afterward, LeBron refused to shake hands with Dwight Howard and Co. Later that summer he was involved in a weird DunkGate scandal. Now he’s dancing and taunting opponents like a 12-year-old.

Putting all of that aside, LBJ is an incredibly fun player to watch; a superhuman athlete capable of pretty much anything on the court. The 2010 free agent circus should vault LeBron to the top spot on this list next season.

2. Dwight Howard

Howard made funny commercials, hit ridiculous trick shots, hilariously impersonated his coach, mastered Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” dance, incorporated a telephone booth into the dunk contest, turned the Orlando front court into a block party, won Defensive Player of the Year, and led his team to the NBA Finals. He also blogged constantly about his experiences and used Twitter to connect with fans.

There’s also the unintentional comedy of a court injunction that bans Dwight’s ex-girlfriend from saying his name in public. How strangely awesome is that?

If not for the final guy on this list, Howard would have won “Most Entertaining Player of the Year” in a landslide.

As it is, he’ll just have to settle for first runner-up.

1. Ron Artest

If you don’t think Artest belongs at the top of this list, you’re out of your damn mind. Ron-Ron is the undisputed champion of crazy antics and entertaining anecdotes.

Here’s a list of Artest-related highlights from ‘09:

- converted his SUV into a recording studio
- engaged in an epic trash talk battle with Kobe Bryant
- called Brandon Roy the toughest player he has ever defended (just to piss Kobe off)
- ran out of a hotel in his underwear to catch a team bus before Game 6 of a crucial playoff series
- signed with the Lakers (seemingly against all odds, we forget this now)
- introduced Lamar Odom and Khloe Kardashian
- made friends with the guy who tossed the beer at him and incited the “Malice at the Palace” brawl
- turned his workout into an epic rap song, then turned the song into an even-more-epic music video
- organized a random photo shoot with 23-year-old hottie Natalie Avci
- told a blogger to “suck a c—”
- shaved ridiculous things into the side of his head
- encouraged women to touch him like he’s blind
- went on Jimmy Kimmel in his skivvies
- told reporters he used to drink cognac at halftime
- tossed Trevor Ariza’s shoe into the crowd
- invited everybody on Twitter to his house for a Christmas party, opening the door for the first ever “stalker kills celebrity after celebrity unwittingly invites him over for dinner” scenario in the history of the United States

Artest was interesting before he came to Los Angeles, but since he landed on planet Hollywood he’s been the biggest spectacle this side of Dennis Rodman.

He’s an easy choice for the NBA’s most entertaining player award.

If you disagree, I welcome your comments below.

* Follow Basketball Fiend on Twitter @BasketballFiend.

* Join Basketball Fiend and receive updates by e-mail HERE.

3 Responses to “The 10 Most Entertaining NBA Players of 2009”

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.