21 Of The Most Awkward Moments To Ever Happen During An NBA Game

NBA athletes are no joke. From pure athleticism to skill built from hard work, NBA players have it all. But they're still human. Nobody on the planet is immune to an awkward moment. And the blunders in the NBA are some of the best in sports.

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Here are 21 most awkward moments to ever happen during an NBA game:

1. There was that one time when James Harden turned the ball over and decided not to chase it down (potential backcourt violation). Either way, he still needed to get on the ball, but he simply followed the rolling ball awkwardly. His lack of awareness allowed the opposing player to scoop it up for an easy basket.

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People were calling it the most "Harden" play ever...

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2. While it didn't happen during the actual play, it wouldn't be an awkward NBA moments list if I didn't include the infamous "Fergie Anthem." At the 2018 NBA All-Star game, singer Fergie performed a brave rendition of the U.S. National Anthem. It felt very strange, slow, a little sensual, and simply awkward. The look on all the players' faces, as they tried their hardest not to laugh, was legendary meme material.

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Related: "Look At Those Beautiful Black Bodies": From An Owner Fetishizing Naked Black Players To Refs Manipulating Games, Here Are The Wildest NBA Scandals Of All Time

The fact that it happened during the All-Star game, too, makes it even more legendary.

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3. With a clear path to the basket off a turnover, Sam Dekker stumbles for one of the most awkward breakaway trip-ups in NBA history, resulting in the basketball smacking him in the face for salt on the wound. Poor guy!

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Just check out this shot from the broadcast cam. It doesn't get more embarrassing than this:

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4. You should never celebrate too early. Kemba Walker found that out the hard way after he shot a jumper that went in and out of the rim, but he assumed it went in and proceeded to shimmy in celebration while the play continued behind him.

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Sometimes you just got to laugh it off:

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5. There are a lot of great blockers in the NBA, but in one game, Carmelo Anthony met his match after a failed dunk. After the whistle blew for a foul, Anthony went up to try and throw down a dunk, but got rejected BY the rim. He then fell awkwardly to the ground as the crowd groaned and the other players looked on.

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Don't worry. Nobody saw that, Melo.

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6. Speaking of Melo, there was one time he got bumped in the head hard and went down. What happened next was truly bizarre: the refs allowed play to continue around Melo. The ball went up and down the court with Melo's body in the way of the action. Turns out, he was momentarily unconscious, and it seemed like everyone else thought he was just overselling the collision.

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Such a bizarre moment. Sports in general have gotten a lot more serious about head injuries and know well enough to stop play immediately.

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7. In Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals, the Cavaliers retained possession in a tie game, but for some reason, JR Smith must've thought his team had the lead, because instead of passing the ball around to score, he tried to run the clock out...and he did so successfully.

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Everyone in the arena but Smith knew what was happening, and LeBron James's reaction was one of the most-used memes of that year.

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8. Steph Curry is one of the greatest shooters of all-time, but even his attempts can lead to awkward moments. In a game against the Chicago Bulls, he tried to put up a fadeaway shot against the much larger Lauri Markkanen, but his shot was blocked into his face, knocking him over.

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Talk about an added insult to injury.

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9. Does blowing in an opponent's ear count as lockdown defense? Well, Lance Stephenson decided to let LeBron know he was guarding him with a little *whoosh*. LeBron's reaction after was priceless.

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10. He isn't a "Shaqtin' a Fool" legend for nothing. "It's your boy, Javale McGee!" And one of his all-time worst blunders was when he ran full speed back on defense despite the Wizards retaining the ball. John Wall just looks back at his teammate, bewildered and speechless.

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McGee made basketball in the 2010s a blast to watch. And people can poke fun at his blunders, but the man is a three-time NBA champion.

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11. After a failed dunk, Von Wafer was unaware that the ball didn't go in. He then proceeds to taunt the crowd while the play continues behind him. To make matters worse, Wafer's teammate recovers his missed dunk, and Wafer then backtracks into his teammate to force a double dribble. Yikes!

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12. Michael Beasley was caught on the bench rubbing his teammate's knee (Michael Tolliver). He then realizes his mistake and apologizes, claiming he thought he was rubbing his own knee, which was covered by a kneepad. Beasley then plays it off by reaching for his knee again, prompting both men to share a laugh.

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13. Tony Parker might be a San Antonio Spurs legend, but he also once made one of the worst airballed free throws of all time. He went to shoot it, and it slipped from his hands. It went up and landed only a few steps away from him. For a guy who had such a high FT percentage, it got an audible gasp from the crowd.

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14. Few NBA in-game moments will make you cringe harder than when Brandon Knight missed an open layup at the horn to win the game in overtime. From costing your team and also making everyone have to stay for an extra overtime period, you gotta feel for poor Knight.

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15. Reggie Evans might have the two weirdest, most awkward, wildest tech/ejection combos of all-time. In one game, Evans got a tech for high-fiving Blake Griffin after getting a foul. Another time, Evans got ejected for exchanging a "butt slap" with an opposing player. You can't make this stuff up!

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16. Eric Gordon passes the quick inbound to P.J. Tucker, but Tucker refuses to grab the ball. It's clear that the play happened so fast that he didn't understand that it was the inbound, but the awkwardness of him just watching it as an opposing player scoops it up to score is simply too much.

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17. Steph Curry once had an easy basket on a breakaway, but slipped as he was going up to put it in. Matters only worsened when he got up, retrieved the ball, sprinted to the corner, and absolutely airballed a three-point attempt.

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18. Andre Drummond may have the greatest failed euro step ever recorded. He gets a one-on-one, hits the euro step, puts the ball up...and it goes straight up into the air instead of the basket. He then retrieves his own shot, which is traveling.

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19. A frustrated James Harden got mad that he didn't get a shot off before the horn, so he proceeded to throw the ball down in anger, which bounced back and hit him square in the face.

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Josh Hart's reaction to the incident was priceless.

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20. Speaking of Harden...After putting a Celtic on the ground with a sick move, Harden took a step back for a three and paused. Harden then did a shimmy to taunt his opponent, then bricked the three-pointer. In all fairness, he has successfully done it before, but this wasn't his brightest moment.

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21. And finally, Victor Oladipo once accidentally thought he had a teammate out wide, but instead, made a pass out to referee Derek Richardson. The ref attempted to jump the incoming ball, stumbling, bumbling, and eventually falling onto the court.

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Richardson got up right away and even made the possession call on the run:

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Is there an NBA awkward moment or blooper that you love? Comment below and explain why it's your favorite!

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