10 Greatest NBA Memes of All Time (And How to Put Your Face on Them)

Basketball is the most meme-able sport on earth. The drama, the trash talk, the sideline reactions, the playoff collapses — the NBA has been producing world-class meme material since before most meme formats existed. We've ranked the 10 greatest NBA memes of all time, with the full history behind each one. And yes, you can put your face on all of them.

1. Crying Jordan

Origin: Michael Jordan's 2009 Basketball Hall of Fame induction speech. MJ broke down crying during his thank-you remarks — and a grainy screengrab of his tear-streaked face became the most universal sports loss meme ever made. "Crying Jordan" is now applied to every losing team, every playoff elimination, every missed free throw that ends a season. It transcended basketball years ago — politicians, celebrities, brands, and entire countries have been Crying Jordan'd.

The meme went truly nuclear around 2015–2016, appearing on everyone from losing Super Bowl teams to the Cleveland Cavaliers (before their 2016 championship) to defeated politicians. It's been called the greatest sports meme ever created. The irony: Jordan was crying out of gratitude, not sadness. He's been laughing at the format ever since.

Read the full Crying Jordan origin story →

2. Yao Ming "Bitch Please" Face

Origin: A 2009 photo of Houston Rockets center Yao Ming (7'6") with a huge grin and skeptical side-eye — the expression of someone who has heard absolute nonsense and is trying not to laugh. The image became the "Bitch Please" (or "That's Not How Any of This Works") reaction meme, applied to any situation involving obvious stupidity or outrageous claims.

Yao's face works perfectly as a meme because it's unambiguous. He's not angry, not sad — he's doing the exact face you make when someone says something so wrong you don't even know where to start. It became one of the most-used reaction images on Reddit circa 2010–2013, and remains a reliable response to this day.

3. LeBron James "The Decision"

Origin: July 8, 2010. LeBron James held an entire ESPN primetime special to announce he was leaving Cleveland for Miami — a move so self-aggrandizing that it generated instant internet mockery. "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach" became the most parodied sports sentence of the decade.

The format: photo of LeBron at the press conference + "I'm going to take my talents to [anywhere]." Used to mock people who make unnecessarily dramatic announcements about mundane decisions. The Decision also spawned years of LeBron memes — from his infamous 2011 Finals disappearing act to the hairline memes (his receding hairline tracked obsessively by NBA Twitter for a decade).

4. Drake Courtside

Origin: Drake became the Toronto Raptors' most visible superfan, attending games courtside and visibly reacting to every play. His expressions — smug trash-talking one minute, devastated the next — became a reliable content source. The specific meme is Drake looking smug at opposing teams' benches, or (better) Drake looking like he's about to cry as the Raptors blow a lead.

The format evolved into the meta-observation: Drake watching basketball is always funnier than the basketball. His 2019 Raptors championship run produced peak Drake meme content, including him physically touching players during timeouts (leading to the "Drake curse" myth where every team he publicly supported immediately lost).

5. Ben Simmons Won't Shoot

Origin: Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons spent four seasons being one of the most gifted passers and defenders in the league — while visibly refusing to shoot from beyond a few feet. The 2021 playoffs crystallized it: Simmons had a wide-open dunk in a critical situation, pump-faked once, passed off, and was eventually benched. He then avoided all questions about it.

The format: Ben Simmons standing wide open near the basket while pointing at someone else to take the shot. Applied to anyone who avoids their obvious responsibility. "Be like Ben Simmons, don't shoot your shot" became shorthand for self-sabotage. He later requested a trade, sat out an entire season, and was eventually moved to the Brooklyn Nets where he... largely continued not shooting.

6. Kevin Durant's Burner Account

Origin: In September 2017, Kevin Durant was caught operating fake Twitter accounts to defend himself and criticize his former coach Billy Donovan and teammate Russell Westbrook — accidentally replying to a critic in the third person from his main account. The tweet: "He didn't like the organization or playing for Billy Donovan. I would've left too."

The format became legendary: a photo of KD on his phone + the concept of an athlete so obsessed with his critics that he creates fake accounts to argue with them. It was the most human, most embarrassing, and frankly most relatable thing a superstar athlete had ever done publicly. NBA Twitter still uses "KD burner" as shorthand for anyone who gets caught defending themselves in secret.

7. Shaq & Charles Barkley on TNT

Origin: The Inside the NBA crew — Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson — has been generating meme material since 2000. Shaq and Chuck's mutual roasting (and frequent disagreements about basketball analysis) has produced hundreds of reaction GIFs. Key moments: Shaq breaking the desk by sitting on it, Chuck falling off his chair laughing, Shaq doing impressions, and Ernie's long-suffering face through all of it.

The "Shaq laughing" GIF (him absolutely losing it in the TNT studio) became one of the most deployed reaction images in NBA Twitter history. It works for anything genuinely funny, absurd playoff results, or whenever someone makes a bold prediction that immediately fails.

8. Giannis "Did You Eat Your Chipotle?"

Origin: In January 2020, Giannis Antetokounmpo was asked at a press conference whether he was surprised by his statistical performance. His response was so earnest it became the format: "I didn't eat Chipotle, so I wasn't surprised." He had pre-game rituals, and straying from them affected him. The clip went viral because it was so specific, so confident, and so authentically Giannis.

More broadly, "Giannis explaining" became a format — the Greek Freak's press conferences are consistently quotable, ranging from philosophical observations about success to surprisingly practical takes on food, family, and preparation. His 2021 championship run ("Do you know how many people told me I wasn't going to be here?") added emotional depth to the meme persona.

9. Stephen Curry Mouthguard

Origin: Every game, for years, Steph Curry has spent every dead ball chewing on his mouthguard. It hangs out of his mouth at the free throw line, during huddles, while celebrating. It became a signature look — and then a meme. The format: Curry chewing his mouthguard + any caption about someone making a difficult task look casual. "Me doing my homework before 11:59 PM" with Curry looking completely unbothered.

The mouthguard meme also captures Curry's overall energy: supremely relaxed while doing things that are, objectively, impossible. His logo threes (shots from 35+ feet) spawned the "too deep" format where Curry looks at a shot from halfway across the court and just nods approvingly as it goes in.

10. James Harden ISO Ball

Origin: James Harden perfected (and then over-perfected) the art of isolation basketball — dribbling for 18 seconds while everyone watches, then either drawing a foul or hoisting a step-back three. The meme: Harden standing still while four teammates stand in the corners watching. Or: Harden pump-faking the same defender 47 times.

The broader "Harden fade" narrative added layers — his disappearing acts in the playoffs, his weight fluctuations, his Houston nightlife photos mid-season, his request for a trade from three different teams. Each new chapter generated fresh meme content. "James Harden in the regular season" vs "James Harden in the playoffs" became a two-panel meme standard.

Put Your Face on These Legends

Every one of these memes works because the expression is universal. Crying Jordan isn't really about Michael Jordan losing — it's about the face you make when something you cared about goes wrong. Ben Simmons Won't Shoot isn't really about basketball — it's about the feeling of watching someone avoid the obvious move.

That's what makes these meme templates so durable. And that's exactly why they're perfect for face swapping. Imagine yourself as the one crying (or the one refusing to shoot, or the one chewing the mouthguard). MEEMES lets you drop your own face into these iconic moments in seconds — no Photoshop required.