(June 25, 1925-September 10, 2007)
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Advertising executive
Owned the Cleveland Cavaliers (1980-83)

He complained that the Cavaliers had too many black players and said he wanted half the players to be white (1979).
He fired popular team play-by-play announcer Joe Tait after Tait criticized him on the air.
He went through four coaches in the 1981-82 season.
He traded away so many high draft picks on mediocre players that the NBA instituted the 'Stepien rule' prohibiting a team from trading away its first round pick in consecutive years.
The New York Times called his Cavaliers 'the most poorly run franchise in professional basketball.' (1982)
He was fined $50,000 by the Continental Basketball Association for failing to cooperate with an investigation into salary cap violations (1987).

He served with the Air Force during World War II.
He did not follow through on threats to move the team to Toronto, selling to a local businessman instead.
He said, 'I don't feel I failed. I rescued a bankrupt organization.'
The NBA awarded the Cavaliers bonus first round picks for 1983-86 to compensate for the ones Stepien traded away.
Thanks to Art Modell moving the Browns to Baltimore, he is at best a distant second among Cleveland's most-hated sports figures.

Credit: C. Fishel

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For 2009, as of last week, Out of 58 Votes: 75.86% Annoying
In 2008, Out of 35 Votes: 74.29% Annoying
In 2007, Out of 92 Votes: 77.17% Annoying

• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 07]
• Cleveland Cavaliers
• I Attended Alcohol Anonymous
• I Died in 2007 (Ranked: 82)
• I Own a Sports Team
• Profiles 21001-21250 (Ranked: 21243)
• Served in World War II