NCAA Basketball: 10 most hated players all-time in the sport
By Bryan Mauro
1. Christian Laettner – Duke
The time has arrived, the list has reached the penultimate player that the entire college basketball world says in unison “I couldn’t stand that guy.” Laettner was the greatest player in Dukes storied history and that is saying something. He was also the player who many people disliked then and when mentioned in conversation still brings uneasy feelings.
Laettner will live on in the annals of College Basketball, after all he did hit one of the biggest shots in the history of the game. The video sequence of the shot is played on the lead into the NCAA tournament games every season. No one will ever forget that shot, it doesn’t hurt that he is a two-time National Champion, Consensus Player of the Year, and the ACC player of the year. He was also on the dream team which no one else on this list will ever be able to say.
The villain role suits Laettner, much like his former Duke brother the big man embraced the disdain and it drove him. The world dislikes Laettner so much that ESPN did a 30 for 30 on that very subject titled “I hate Christian Laettner.” It outlines that Laettner admitted to stepping on a player and he flat-out doesn’t care what you think of him.
As was mentioned earlier about the “Duke persona” who better to fit into the category than the one player who helped create it. The former Blue Devil was cocky, arrogant, and extremely self-absorbed over his time in Durham. Laettner knew he was better than you on the court and knew that he was going to be officiated differently as a result.
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The sheer dislike for Duke was perpetuated by guys like Laettner, so much so that some fans have made it a lifestyle. They still print the shirts that read “I still hate Christian Laettner” they are sold on the internet. No one player has ever had as lasting of an effect both on the court and in peoples minds quite like Laettner.