Dirtiest Player in NBA History - Sometimes It Pays To Be Bad

Picture this.

You're an NBA rookie in 1989. You've excelled at every level and have continued to perform amongst the best in the world. Hell, you might even be a shout for the Rookie of the Year! However, one quick trip to Detroit and you come away with a couple of bruised ribs, a bloody nose and a twisted ankle - and that's if you're lucky. This is the home of the Bad Boy Piston's, a team born into hate that houses some of the NBA's greatest ever basketball hitmen and at their very centre (quite literally) is Bill Laimbeer - a man that would rather put you on a stretcher than allow a basket.  

At 6'11" and 245lbs, Laimbeer didn't fuss around with providing big-time buckets or dishing out flashy assists - he left that to his All-Star teammates Isiah Thomas and Dennis Rodman. Instead, he was tasked with one simple goal, to stop opposing players by any means necessary. To you and I, that might mean a hard foul here and there and maybe the odd bit of trash talk. Not to Bill. He protected that basket as if it was his own newborn baby - throwing elbows, hurling insults and generally just being an ass****.

So it's no surprise that when Coach Chuck Daley came up with 'The Jordan Rules' in the late '80s, Laimbeer was more than happy to help out.  This set of rules were set out to stop one man, Michael Jordan - the only possible threat to the Pistons hope at a Championship ring. The concept was simple, every time Jordan went up, it was Laimbeer's job to make sure he came down hard and for two straight seasons, it actually worked! 

Detroit won back to back titles in 1989 and 1990, defeating Jordan's Bull's twice along the way. In fact, Laimbeer was so effective against Jordan, he ended his career with the most wins against him than anyone else in NBA history (30). This is due to one simple fact. As all basketball players know, there is always the odd hard foul in a game, aimed more at taking a good player out of their stride more than anything else. Laimbeer took it one step further. Like a tiger who hunts to kill, Laimeer fouled to hurt and for the most part, he kept to his philosophy for much of his NBA career. This made him not just unliked but hated by most NBA players and their coaches. 

However, this was the '80s - easily the most physical era of basketball that the NBA has ever seen. Whilst today's officials seem to blow up every time someone sneezes, old school officials seemed to just wait until any blood has drawn before calling a foul. Laimbeer played to this and is the main reason he was so effective, and I think it's safe to say that in today's game, he'd probably just about make it through warm-ups before getting thrown out. 

Laimbeer relished being the villain and you can't really argue with his results:

4 x All-Star 

2 x NBA Champion 

1 x Total Rebound Leader (1985-1986)

1 x Jersey Retirement (#40 in 1995)

Some may call him dirty, but I prefer the word 'resourceful'. He did what he needed to do and you can't lie - it paid off. 

Bill Laimbeer (right) vs Michael Jordan (left) - bleacherreport.com