Sports Stars Who Hate 'Dumb' Questions

I couldn't imagine what it would be like to be a professional athlete or head coach who, win or lose, is required to talk to the media for the sake of a reporter's story.

Sure, I understand why it happens, but that doesn't mean that those sports stars like it, and a few of our favorites make it known that they would rather just keep their mouths shut.

And when a reporter asks a question that the player or coach deems less than amusing, things can get really interesting, as the player gives a sound bite worth remembering—just not the one the journalist is hoping for.

For all those who hate dumb questions: Here's to you, because some sports stars dislike them too.

When interviewing an athlete, one would be wise not to ask a question that a man who stands 6'6" and weighs 270 pounds might find to be a little bit offensive.

Unfortunately, a younger John Stossel didn't think about what consequences doing so might bring, as his question to former heavyweight wrestling champ David Schultz ended with a punch to Stossel's noggin, leaving Schultz—otherwise known as Dr. Death—yelling at him and asking if the reporter thought the punch felt fake.

Note to self: Never anger a man who gets paid to beat up his body for a living—and may or may not be aggro all the time.

How dare someone ask Alabama Crimson Tide head football coach Nick Saban how the whole running back-by-committee strategy helps his offense? He doesn't believe in such a word.

Instead, the four-time national championship-winning coach thinks that rotating guys in and out of the lineup is just a case of really good football players getting their chance to get onto the field.

OK, Nick, so a committee, then?

I don't really understand why Saban was upset with the question to begin with, all but berating reporter Heather Cox, but he seemed as if someone just threw him under the bus for taking the last slice of pizza—which he felt necessary to defend for some reason.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James is the most popular athlete on the planet and, typically, comes across as being one of the nicest, down-to-earth people in entertainment.

Of course, that is until someone asks him something that he feels is just wasting his time.

Bron proved that not just once—as when using a certain "R" word to describe his thoughts on a question after a playoff loss in 2011—but also following a loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the 2014 NBA Finals as a member of the Miami Heat.

Rather than even entertain the question, James simply laughed and deferred to then-teammate Dwyane Wade, who then gave the most unenthusiastic answer in order to just move on.

In this instance, I might actually give Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker credit for walking out of a live interview rather than add gasoline to the small fire burning between himself and former quarterback Tom Brady.

Following a Super Bowl loss in 2012 while still with the Pats, Welker was thrown under the bus by Brady's supermodel wife, Gisele Bundchen, saying that the team lost because of dropped passes—which was a serious knock on the receiver.

So when a reporter began referencing both Gisele and Brady in some questions during Super Bowl week in 2014, the demeanor of Welker noticeably changed. He then ended the conversation by just walking out.

It looks like that's a topic not worth discussing, like, ever.

Just the other day, Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien was in no mood to talk about a sucker punch he threw during his team's playoff series with the Anaheim Ducks.

Rather than answer similarly phrased questions, Byfuglien took a page out of Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch's book by simply repeating a variation of the same answer over and over again.

He may be embarrassed by what he did, may not be taking responsibility for the cheap shot or just might be sick of talking about it, but whatever the reason, the defender didn't find it necessary to give reporters anything they wanted to hear.

Although he's projected as the No. 1 pick in this year's NFL draft, former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jameis Winston hasn't always been a saint.

Getting in some trouble off the field with things like stealing crab legs and yelling some immature stuff in Florida State's student center, Winston's most controversial incident came in 2013 when he had a sexual-assault case filed against him.

While the charges were dropped—right before the ACC Championship Game—ESPN reporter Heather Cox wanted to know the kid's thoughts about things.

Whether instructed to or just from his own impulse, Winston walked away from the mic in a rather unpleasant manner, leaving some to bash Cox for even bringing up the case.

One of the absolute kings of media hate, former Indiana Hoosiers men's hoops coach Bobby Knight always seemed to have it out for one specific reporter: Jeremy Schaap.

Never did Knight's displeasure with Schaap come out more than in a 2000 interview in which the reporter actually asked the Hall of Fame coach if he was going to change.

Trying to get Knight to talk, Schaap pushed back, leaving Knight not too pleased and raising his voice to say, "Will you let me finish?" and ending with some wise words about how far the younger Schaap had to go to reach the magnitude of the journalist's dad, well-known reporter Dick Schaap.

Awkward and unpleasant, Knight had numerous such encounters with the media throughout his years in basketball.

As we all saw once his MVP teammate Kevin Durant went down with a season-ending injury, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook has a competitive gene like few in all of sports.

So when a reporter actually asked this year's NBA's All-Star Game MVP if he would be cheering for the San Antonio Spurs for OKC to solidify their playoff spot, Russ didn't take it too kindly, replying back to the notion that he had to root for the Spurs with, "I ain't gotta root for nobody. I ain't no Spurs fan. What type of question is that?"

This, of course, was after Westbrook seemed to stare through the soul of the reporter who asked it before replying, no doubt wondering if he should actually say something worthy of a response.

Thankfully, he went with option No. 2.

I'm someone who generally sticks to the idea of never bringing up old stuff.

ESPN's Bomani Jones and Dan Le Batard? Well, they didn't seem to mind doing it, asking former NFL linebacker Shawne Merriman a ton of questions about his past.

Pressing and (figuratively) digging a knife deeper and deeper into Merriman, the reporters continued to harp on the topic of the former star's homelessness while growing up due to several house fires—which, noticeably, got to the guy.

Rather than continue to answer the same questions and relive his past, Merriman did the unthinkable by simply removing himself from the interview, leaving the two reporters wondering what had just happened.

He may not be regarded as a party boy much anymore, but when he first broke into the big leagues in 2012 as a hotshot phenom, Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper had a reputation for being one.

At the time, the 19-year-old was still two years removed from legally boozing it up in the States, making his team's trip north of the border one that intrigued a few people—seeing as how the legal drinking age in Canada is 18 years old.

When a reporter actually had the audacity to ask Harper if he would be taking advantage of technically being allowed to drink, Harper gave an answer that will forever be attached to him, saying, "That's a clown question, bro."

It's incredible, really. Not only did Harper shrug off the question, but he did so in the most 19-year-old, "I can't wait to get north of the border and get hammered" tone ever.

Well played, Bryce.

It seems long ago now that the New England Patriots won their fourth Super Bowl title in the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick era, but following an early-season blowout on national TV to the Kansas City Chiefs, many wondered if the Pats were over the hill and if their reign atop the NFL was over.

That led to questions regarding the quarterback spot, with more than a few thinking that Brady's poor play had to be evaluated a little bit more in-depth now that he was getting older.

Belichick, though? He scoffed at the idea.

When asked about that very subject, the future Hall of Fame head coach simply rolled his eyes, looked at the reporter who asked it with disgust and gave a snarky laugh as if to say, "Are you a moron?"

As we know, this wasn't the first or last time that Belichick has replied in such a demeaning manner.

By now, nearly every sports fan is aware of Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch's penchant for avoiding every question a reporter directs at him.

Whether uncomfortable or just plain uninterested, Beast Mode doesn't hold back in showing his disgust for the media anytime they shove a microphone in his face.

First, Lynch avoided trying to speak with anyone during Super Bowl media day in 2014, covering himself up as much as possible before Deion Sanders tracked him down.

The result was a saying that became the running back's motto, as he's "just about that action, boss."

In this year's Super Bowl, Lynch outdid himself, sitting up at a podium and hitting the stopwatch on his phone to comply with the five minutes that the league mandated for players to be available to reporters.

Once again, Marshawn gave a reply that became the biggest from the game's coverage, simply stating that he was actually there so that he didn't get fined.

As a man of few words, it's clear Lynch doesn't find any question from the media to be worth an honest reply.

I may have mentioned how Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook is a competitor who doesn't like to lose, but there isn't an athlete more fiery than L.A. Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant.

One of the surliest dudes in all of sports, the Black Mamba isn't one to care about another person's feelings, never sugarcoating or fluffing off his replies when it comes to reporters' questions.

And it's Bryant's body language and facial expressions that make his replies classic, as he proved after a loss to the Thunder a couple years ago in the postseason, sarcastically replying to a media member with a reply that had to have left the person who asked it feeling pretty silly.

It's as if Kobe purposely wanted to punk him out rather than give the politically correct response.

Ladies and gentleman, I give you Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs.

Although the five-time NBA championship head coach is best known for his lack of enthusiasm for interviews between periods—especially with Craig Sager—it has become Pop's little shtick at this point, with fans and commentators wondering how much he'll actually say.

It's almost as if Popovich is the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld, where you never know exactly what type of mood you're going to get.

Many people have tried to steer the coach toward breaking the mold, but few ever actually have.