Gary Payton
Payton was arguably Seattle’s greatest-ever player and also had one of the biggest mouths. But he earned the right to say what he wanted because he was on another level. There weren’t many athletes who had the confidence to sneer at Shaquille O’Neal. But Payton had no qualms about shutting the Lakers’ star down.
He once infamously told Jamie Feick that he wouldn’t be in the league the following year. This was true but it was a harsh thing to say. Payton also admitted that he if knew anything about anybody’s family members he went after them without hesitation. This made him one of the sport’s most notorious trash-talkers (via USA Today Sports).
