20 Of The Most Hilarious Reactions NBA Players Had To The Referees – These Are Great!

Burtland Dixon | July 18, 2024 1:00 pm

Referees are always getting calls wrong which is frustrating for players, coaches, and fans alike.

While bad calls happen, at least we have these hilarious pictures of athletes' reactions to make up for it.

"I Did No Such Thing!"

Photo Credit: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images
Photo Credit: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images

Hall of Fame power forward Tim Duncan doesn't typically express himself much on the court. "The Big Fundamental" just plays ball. Since complaints from Duncan are almost like witnessing a unicorn, this picture is even better. As you see, he does not like what the referee called.

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Just Clap It Up

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Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
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Draymond Green is a feisty player. He's been known to kick opposing players in their private parts. He's had shouting matches with referees. There's pretty much nothing Green hasn't done. But to see him applaud a referee? Now that's a show of pure patience. But when any player claps instead of complains, they are actually furious deep down.

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It Was Him!

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Photo Credit: Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
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Jon Henson looks ticked off. It seems like he is yelling, "It was him!" While he complains and tries to make his case, the referee is just standing there, hand on hip, not giving a care in the world. From the looks of it, Henson's teammate is really to get back to playing.

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Even The Coach Can't Believe It

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Photo Credit: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
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Here, Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibideau and player Jamal Crawford stand baffled in front of the referee. Thibideau looks more upset than the player! Whatever the referee called must have been bad, but Thibideau is known to be expressive.

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You've Got To Be Kidding Me

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Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
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Rising star Brandon Ingram of the Los Angeles Lakers is another player who keeps his mouth shut. He hardly talks during interviews and doesn't say much on the floor either. So whatever this referee could have called against him must have caused Ingram to take offense.

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Harden Can't Believe It

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Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
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James Harden is a top-five player in the NBA. He makes people foul him more than he gets called for fouls. So whenever the referee blows their whistle on him, he instantly becomes perplexed. Harden thinks he's innocent every time so when he complains the opposing fans love it.

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A Golden Complaint

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Photo Credit: Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images
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What could the Golden State Warriors have done wrong here? The referee made a call that was so bad in their eye that three of their main players had the same reaction. Meanwhile, the OKC player on his bottom looks up with a slight grin on his face.

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Don't Mess With Sheed Pt. 1

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Photo Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
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Imagine Draymond Green but ten times worse. That's Rasheed Wallace. The power forward never holds back when speaking up. He throws tantrums regularly. And here we see him ready to fight for the right call, literally. What was this referee thinking?

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Don't Mess With Sheed Pt. 2

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Photo Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
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This is Rasheed Wallace in his purest form; always questioning the referees. Wallace could have made it as an actor with all the faces he's capable of producing. Nine times out of ten, his calls aren't reversed, so he just looks like an angry man yelling at referees.

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The Mamba Gets Got

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Photo Credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images
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Kobe Bryant is the loser in this situation. If you know anything about Bryant then you know he hates to lose. You can see it all over his face that he was disgruntled with this referee's decision. The fan behind him couldn't even believe it.

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You Have The Right To Remain Calm

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Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
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J.J. Barea is one of the smaller players on the court. The NBA has him listed at 6' 0", but that's being generous. Whenever he gets upset, it's slightly more pleasing to watch because he looks like a child playing amongst men. Think about any time you've seen a small boy yell at an adult...that's Barea!

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Curry Makes A Run For It

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Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
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Every superstar complains about a call at some point. How they choose to react is the fun part. Here you can see that Stephen Curry was ready to make a run for it after the whistle blew. Whatever happened or didn't happen must have got him excited.

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"Hold Me Back!"

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Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
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When you're this upset at the referee, sometimes you need to be restrained. As you see here, Robin Lopez had more than a few words for this NBA official. His teammate had to hold him back out of fear he might retaliate with physical force. Lopez ended up being ejected from this game, but not before mouthing off.

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Bulging Eyes From Parker

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Photo Credit: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
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Tony Parker hilariously can't understand what went wrong. There's a player on the floor, and the referee has just called something. Most of the time if the other player is on the ground, the player who is standing up committed the foul. Parker knows this but still decides to plead his case.

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Shock In Philly

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Photo Credit: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images
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Philadelphia 76ers player Robert Covington is in shock. Judging by the hand signals the referee makes, it looks like possession of the ball switched to the other team. Covington doesn't agree with this and looks like he is about to use the restroom mid-sentence.

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Watch Your Mouth!

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Photo Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady isn't typically expressive on the court. But when this situation presented itself, McGrady didn't hold back his emotions. This referee inspired some questionable words that the cameraman caught at the perfect moment.

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Bad Call On A Big Man

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Photo Credit: Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Photo Credit: Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
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By the looks of how loaded the arena is, this easily could have been a playoff game. When there is a significant game, and the referee makes a bad call, then the reactions from the players are that much better. It looks like Tyler Hansborough just watched his dog run away from him.

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LeBron Needs A Moment

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Photo Credit: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
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LeBron James and his coach Tyrone Lue are in disbelief. The referee almost has a look of accomplishment as if he planned on making these two upset. James can't even look in the referee's direction. That is a real sign of disgust. What exactly went wrong here?

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Be Gone Headband

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Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
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Legend Allen Iverson is not the one to mess with. Maybe that's why this referee isn't even looking his way. Iverson is ready to snatch off his headband and get crazy. The astonished look on his face most likely turned to sassiness and gave Iverson a permanent attitude for the rest of that game.

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Bad Call Sad Coach

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Photo Credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Photo Credit: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
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We know that the players get heated at the referees, but the coaches take part as well. In this edition of comical responses to referees, coach Mike Brown tries to contain himself. We've all made this face when we've had to hold back from saying something we might regret.