Cleveland Cavaliers Roster Rumors: Coaches and Players Agree - Dellavedova Is League's Dirtiest Player
There's no honor and prestige in being voted the "dirtiest player" in the NBA. It's a kind of thing that no one wants to go up to the stage and receive an award for. But for Australian guard Matthew Dellavedova, it is something he needs to face the rest of his life in the league.
There's no certainty as to how the Cleveland Cavaliers would react to this one. But Lebron James, being the good friend and teammate that he is, will be inclined to talk to the press and say something about it.
Dellavedova's reputation came to the spotlight last season when he was involved in several questionable plays in the offseason that led to injuries and altercations. The most popular instance is when he hit Kyle Korver of the Atlanta Hawks, causing serious injury in the process. Korver missed the rest of the Eastern Conference Finals and the Hawks bowed out of contention.
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The list is a result of a recent Los Angeles Times poll that interviewed several NBA coaches, assistant coaches, and players. While some players did get some votes, too, Dellavedova was the only one who got double the votes of others, specifically 13 votes. Next to him is center Steven Adams from the Oklahoma City Thunder with seven votes. Golden State Warriors center and another Australian, Andrew Bogut, got five points, while Memphis forward and controversial player Matt Barnes receiving four votes. The fifth position went to another Thunder player, serge Ibaka, who got two votes.
Some coaches, who requested to remain anonymous, said that the point guard's tactics inside the court were borderline dangerous because they hurt people. But there are also a few who said that his plays aren't really dirty; instead merely results of playing hard whenever given the opportunity to be on the floor.
The list may be intriguing for many people, but its content is quite interesting. It's not often that a negative distinction is made in a professional sporting industry.
