The ranking of Boston’s greatest sports villains, with Kyrie in mind, originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Everyone loves a good villain. Without Lex Luthor, Superman is just some kind of self-serving drip. Without Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker is just a petulant brat whining about power inverters. Without the Wicked Witch or Hannibal Lecter… you get the idea.
Boston sports has seen its share of villains, dating back to Harry Frazee and his sale of Babe Ruth to the Yankees, birthing one dynasty and burying another. The mere presence of a player, coach or manager that we love to hate immediately heightens the drama. The final win over the Yankees in 2004 felt extra special because we knew George Steinbrenner had to watch it.
This brings us to the 2024 NBA Finals, which pits the Celtics against the Mavericks, but in reality may as well be about Boston versus Kyrie Irving. The treacherous guard has committed a multitude of sins into his short Celtics tenure, and he will undoubtedly be the center of ire when Game 1 begins Thursday at TD Garden.
But where does he rank among Boston’s greatest villains of the past 50 years? In honor of Irving’s No. 11, here are the top 11 villains, evildoers and reprobates in Boston sports history. (If you’re wondering why Patriots destroyer Bernard Pollard isn’t on the list, it’s because his knockout blows of Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski lacked intent, unlike some others on this list).
11. Johannes Hendrik
A recent addition that would have been unthinkable five years ago. John Henry, overseer of four World Series titles, a villain?
But since the firing of Dave Dombrowski, Henry has turned into the worst kind of owner: absent, withdrawn, stingy. The Red Sox have become irrelevant under his watch, more concerned about the rest of their enormous portfolio than the club putting the “Fenway” in FSG.
Transform a major franchise into a sideshow through conscious (in)action, and yes, you’re a bad guy.
10. David Price
He was there in the 2018 playoffs and the Red Sox won’t win a World Series without him, but Price was so venomously miserable in Boston that he deserves special mention.
Shouting out the iconic, unquestionable Dennis Eckersley – who happens to be one of the nicest, most genuine people you’ll ever meet – was bad enough. Price’s resistance made matters worse. There were members of the Red Sox front office and coaching staff who feared that apologizing to Eckersley would trickle down to Price and destroy their standing in the clubhouse.
There’s a word for that, and it’s: “Yuck.”
9. Roger Clemens
It’s not like the Rocket is left at large, as that’s as much a Dan “Twilight of his Career” Duquette decision as it is Clemens’. It’s everything that happened next.
Clemens entered free agency by saying he wanted to play closer to his home in Texas before taking top dollar from the Blue Jays, who play in Canada. Ultimately, he found his way not only to the Yankees, but also to the heart of baseball’s steroid scandal. By the time he faced Pedro Martinez in a memorable ALCS match in 1999, he was perhaps the most hated athlete in Boston.
Time has soothed those wounds, but let’s never forget the impromptu call and response of, “Where’s Roger? … In the shower!” at Fenway that afternoon.
8. Bill Percells
The tuna streaked across New England like a meteor—a cunning, proud, errand-ridden meteor.
He actually ended up not under Robert Kraft, but under James Orthwein, the Anheuser-Busch magnate who wanted to move the franchise to St. Louis. Parcells immediately clashed with Kraft, and by the time the Pats reached Super Bowl XXXI against the heavily favored Packers, Parcells was already finding a loophole out of his contract. He eventually joined the hated Jets and stole the Patriots’ best player, Curtis Martin.
Prior to Foxboro’s Super Bowl Era, nothing beat the annual Tuna Bowls for intensity and drama.
7. Bill Laimbeer
Everything about Laimbeer was hateful, from his privileged Notre Dame leathers to his preppy hair and the Hannibal Lecter face mask he wore on the field. Laimbeer was the old man at the Y who compensates for being a step too slow with sharp elbows and constant grabbing, grabbing and tearing.
Laimbeer was a proud irritant and enjoyed leveling his opponents. Robert Parish couldn’t take it anymore and covered him. Larry Bird fired a ball at him.
Laimbeer was the face of the Bad Boy Pistons and even became a punchline on Cheers, when Kevin McHale peered at an X-ray labeled “adult male gorilla” and remarked, “That’s not me.” It could be Laimbeer though.”
6. Pat Riley
Call this a Lifetime Achievement Award. During the ’80s, Riley presented the Hollywood counterpoint to the luncheon Celtics, all slick hair and suits and American Psycho smart.
He worked the officials constantly when the Celtics beat up his Showtime Lakers, and he celebrated two titles at Boston Garden. Then came his second gig as Knicks coach, where he nearly ruined basketball with the uncompromising bully style of Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason.
Now he’s the Heat’s asset, Boston’s annual foe, lurking and somehow finding ways to win long after losing LeBron James. It would be admirable if it weren’t so damn frustrating.
5.Jack Tatum
“Villain” doesn’t even begin to describe Tatum’s place in Boston sports history. ‘Pure evil’ might be better.
He paralyzed Patriots receiver Darryl Stingley with an unnecessarily brutal hit in a preseason game in 1978, stood over his broken body and then not only never apologized but wrote a memoir, “They Call Me Assassin,” in which he celebrated his destructiveness. He belongs to a separate category of malice.
4. Roger Goodell
You can say he was simply doing what the league’s other owners did, or trying to make up for his perceived shortcomings during Spygate, but Goodell willingly played the heavy role during Deflategate, the scandal that consumed Patriots fans for months.
Whatever Tom Brady did or didn’t do with those footballs, we can all agree that it did not warrant an appeal that reached the Supreme Court’s goal line. Goodell remains persona non grata in New England, and that will never change.
3. Ulf Samuelsson
You had to experience it to appreciate the tragedy of Samuelsson’s foul hit on Cam Neely during the 1991 NHL playoffs. The knee-on-knee collision caused a degenerative condition that sidelined Neely for most of the next two seasons and ended his career at age 31, but not before he returned to score 50 goals in 49 games in 1994.
Samuelsson didn’t care. He embraced his reputation as one of the league’s nastiest players — a stick in the eye six years earlier also ended the career of Montreal forward Pierre Mondou — and Bruins fans only wish the referees wouldn’t be so quick had intervened when Neely dropped Samuelsson’s gloves. in 1993.
Neely landed some straight lefts to the head, but karmic justice would be meted out two years later with a Tie Domi sucker punch that knocked out Samuelsson.
2.Alex Rodriguez
Hard to believe it’s been over twenty years since the Red Sox spent an entire fall pursuing Rodriguez, will they or won’t they, only to watch him join the rival Yankees when their deal fell through last moment failed. 11th hour.
The A-Rod news came on the heels of Aaron Bleeping Boone and felt cosmically unfair. The animosity only increased when Jason Varitek shoved his catcher’s glove into Rodriguez’s face during the 2004 season, and when Rodriguez underhandedly punched Bronson Arroyo’s glove during the playoffs.
Add in some whining about David Ortiz and his own shameful behavior during the steroid era, and A-Rod is an all-time villain.
1. Kyrie Irving
Recency bias? No. Irving left Cleveland because he was tired of playing sous chef for LeBron James, which should have been a red flag. Even when things were going well in Boston, Irving presented himself as a self-centered know-it-all.
Then came the knee injury that ended his 2018 season in March, his disappearance before Game 7 against the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals, his promise to stay in Boston, followed by angry declarations that he didn’t owe anyone a peep, his public feuds with Kevin Durant, the constant targeting of young teammates, his departure from the Celtics in the 2019 playoffs, his escape to Brooklyn, his return to Boston twice in the playoffs, the rejection of Garden fans and ten finally its place as the final obstacle for Banner 18.
Irving is the ultimate villain because he nearly destroyed the Celtics from within and without, and the next chapter in this saga will be written at the end of this month.
Losing an NBA title this year would be crushing enough, but losing to Irving would be incredibly devastating.
