Cole Vanderbilt: Basketball Villain or ‘Teddy Bear?’ [POLL]

Vanderbilt is arguably the most hated basketball player on the Internet right now because many believe his fouls are not just hard: they are downright dirty and potentially dangerous.

As seen in the video above, Vanderbilt wacks, clubbers and clotheslines his opponents, who are frequently much smaller than him. In one particularly controversial play, he hammers a player driving to the basket in mid-air.

Below are screenshots of the foul, taken from the video.

He shouldn't be playing basketball, he has bad intentions and is not adding any value or skill to the team. This is on [Cole], his parents, and the coach. What a disgrace, he should be suspended for the remainder of the season, stated a comment on YouTube, which is representative of the general sentiment online.

Vanderbilt's coach, however, stands behind him.

He's a tough kid, but those that know him know he's a teddy bear. My 7-year-old son loves him and lights up when he's around. But on (YouTube) he's the world's meanest, ugliest kid. It's not fair, but I just want him to know his teammates and coaches are behind him, his coach told the Tri-City Herald.

Jack Millikin, the writer who covered this story for the Tri-City Herald, even penned a piece titled Vanderbilt deserves some peace, arguing that Cole did not deserve the hate of the entire Internet.

Millikin also opined that Vanderbilt's coach, Oscar Garza, bears some blame, a sentiment many on the Internet agree with. Many people online also blame the referees for not ejecting Vanderbilt for his dangerous fouls.

So does Vanderbilt deserve to be the basketball villain on the Internet? Voice your opinion in the poll below.

<a href=http://polldaddy.com/poll/5817764/ mce_href=http://polldaddy.com/poll/5817764/>Is Cole Vanderbilt the Internet basketball villain or just a Teddy Bear at heart?</a>