CLEVELAND, Ohio -- It's word association.

Top "character" in Cavaliers history? Ted Stepien.

Much like the choice to name LeBron James the team's top player and Michael Jordan the top antagonist, the choice to name Stepien the top character was obvious -- although with the advent of the Cavaliers girls and wilder and wilder halftime and in-game entertainment acts, maybe he was just ahead of his time.

The late owner of the team, who never did understand the criticism he took for the way he ran the franchise, leads the Top 40 Cavalier characters, the fourth category in a series celebrating the team's 40th season. Once again, the word "top" is purposefully vague enough to justify almost anything, as is "character." Although some will read it with a negative connotation, it really isn't meant that way. Colorful might be the most operative adjective.

Broadcaster Joe Tait, former trainer Gary Briggs and ex-players such as Craig Ehlo, Damon Jones and Chris Gatling made the list because of their outgoing personalities and the fact that they always had a wealth of good stories to share. In fact, most of the people on the list had tremendous relationships with the media -- at least on most days. Some liked to talk about themselves. Some liked to tell tales on others. There also seems to be an absurdly high number of characters who made the list because of their weight issues or food-related achievements.

As we did in selecting the Top 40 games in Cavs history in January, the Top 40 players in February and the Top 40 antagonists earlier this month, Plain Dealer sportswriters Mary Schmitt Boyer, Dennis Manoloff and Mike Peticca collected more than 60 nominations and pared them down to 40.

But unlike previous categories that could be researched in press guides and newspaper clippings, this time we conducted numerous interviews with insiders, many of whom chose to remain anonymous. Another valuable resource was the book "Cavs From Fitch to Fratello" by Joe Menzer and Burt Graeff. Graeff, now retired, was a longtime Cavs beat writer for the Cleveland Press and The Plain Dealer.

Graeff, Tait and Briggs were invaluable to this project, as were Plain Dealer columnist Bill Livingston, former Cavs GM Wayne Embry, Cavs senior director broadcast services Dave Dombrowski and former public relations director Bill Needle.

As in the previous stories, there are no right or wrong answers. Fans are encouraged to express their opinions and suggestions for the Top 40 characters on cleveland.com/cavs

1. Ted Stepien -- As an old advertising man who made his fortune with Nationwide Advertising, he actually might have been honored to head the list.

The stories about Stepien's days with the Cavaliers are endless. He owned the team for only three years, 1980-83, but there was at least one wild story from each of those days.

There isn't room to recount all of them, so we'll just mention some highlights, such as the entertainment trio of the Teddi Bears dance team, Crazy George The World's Greatest Ballhandler, and Don "Boot" Buttrey, who crushed beer cans with his teeth and blew up firecrackers in his mouth. That combination scared then-NBA commissioner Lawrence O'Brien at a luncheon in advance of the 1981 All-Star Game in Cleveland.

Stepien changed the team's fight song to a polka and delivered copies of it to radio stations with a pound of kielbasa.

He wanted to draft David Magley in the second round in 1982 after taking John Bagley in the first round because he thought the team could market "Bagley and Magley."

Often -- wrongly -- relying on Bill Musselman for advice on players, Stepien traded away No. 1 draft choices to Dallas in 1983, 1984 and 1985, prompting O'Brien to halt any further dealing to save Stepien from himself. Later, the league rules were changed to prevent a team from trading its No. 1 draft choice in consecutive years.

But the most unforgivable sin for some fans was when he drove off popular broadcaster Tait.

2. Gary Suiter -- Joe Tait says Suiter was the wackiest character he has ever seen with the Cavs. Now that's saying something.

He was signed as a 6-foot-9 free agent center/forward from Midwestern University in Wichita Falls, Texas. On his way to Cleveland for the team's first training camp, he felt asleep on the plane and had to be roused by the cleaning crew. It was the first of many sleeping mishaps. During the exhibition season, he took his pre-game nap, jumped out of bed when his alarm went off, started to run out the door, hit the door jamb and knocked himself out. He fell asleep on another plane and woke up in the hangar. He missed the pre-game meeting before the team's first regular-season game in Buffalo while waiting in line to buy hot dogs and a Coke.

He played in 30 games before Bill Fitch finally had enough.

3. World B. Free -- The ultimate showman. It's no wonder he arrived in a helicopter and walked a red carpet after signing a two-year contract with the Cavs in 1984. OK, that was really General Manager Harry Weltman's idea, but Free didn't exactly put up a fight, either. When the team started 2-19 in 1984 and reporters wondered if the Cavs would threaten the Philadelphia 76ers' league-worst record of 9-73, Free said, "No way. I'll win nine games by myself." He also once told a pack of reporters waiting to get into the locker room, "You don't even have to come in, boys. Just throw the notebooks in to us. We'll fill 'em up and throw 'em back out."

4. Bill Fitch

-- He had an incredible sense of humor, which came in handy as the franchise's first coach. He kept the reporters laughing those first few seasons while everybody else was laughing at his team. He lasted nine seasons, managing to win the division and get his team into the playoffs in his sixth season, even winning a first-round playoff series against Washington in what became known as the Miracle of Richfield. That team still holds a special place in the hearts of fans, and as the coach of that squad, so does Fitch. It's hard to pick just one story about Fitch, but we like the one about him paying $8 for a fake human skull with a fake rat attached to it and putting it under his seat in Portland, where the Cavs ended a 15-game losing streak with their first victory, 105-103, on Nov. 12, 1970.

5. (tie) Derrick Chievous -- Nicknamed "Mis-Chievous." Wore a bandage on various parts of his body for no apparent reason. Often the first player in the locker room before a game, he would put on a teammate's jersey and lie down in front of his locker, again for no apparent reason. Once had Paul Mokeski autograph a pair of Mokeski's shoes, then wore them during the game, even though they were the wrong size. Took some journalism courses at Missouri and always reminded reporters he knew as much about the profession as they did. Who knows? Maybe he did.

5. (tie) Mel Turpin -- The sixth pick in the 1984 draft by the Washington Bullets, who immediately traded him to the Cavs, Turpin essentially ate himself out of the league. Nicknamed "Dinner Bell" Mel or "Turp the Burp." He signed a three-year contract for $1 million, but paid $90,000 in fines for being overweight his first season. He wouldn't even go near the scale. He just paid the fines. When he was traded to Utah in 1987, he left Cleveland weighing 287 pounds but weighed in at 301 a few days later, telling Utah trainers, "I love airline food."

7. Edgar Jones -- After signing with the University of Nevada-Reno he mistakenly showed up for school in Jerry Tarkanian's office at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. "What the hell? They're both gambling towns," Jones said. He had no front teeth and used to say he blocked shots with his face. Among his many infamous quotes was this: "All talent has limitations, and I don't have any."

8. Bill Musselman -- Absolutely driven to win and would do just about anything to do so, which often led to rash decisions ... such as playing Randy Smith 48 minutes in the first exhibition game of the season. A scrappy guy, he often favored feisty, less talented players who were similarly driven and wouldn't question him, so there were many, many personnel mistakes. His organization and time management skills also were lacking, and it wasn't unusual for practice to be pushed back while he finished a game of racquetball. He yelled and screamed, and that didn't sit well with players.

9. Ricky Davis -- A legend (?) for clanging a shot off the opponent's rim and rebounding the ball in a misguided attempt at obtaining a triple double in a game against Utah in 2003, which earned him the nickname "Wrong Rim Ricky." He also called Cleveland a "black hole" after he was traded to the Boston Celtics.

10. Joe Tait

-- The legendary radio broadcaster has a delivery as colorful as his sweaters. No one person has been more closely identified with the team throughout its existence. He has a funny story on everyone, and some can actually be printed.

11. Scot Pollard -- In addition to many wacky haircuts and painted nails, he once looked into a TV camera during a game and said, "Kids, do drugs." He later apologized.

12. Shawn Kemp -- Kemp was way, way past his prime by the time the Cavs traded for him in 1997. He still had enough talent left to carry the team for a couple of seasons, but his baggage was excessive, as was his waistline. He showed up for training camp weighing over 300 pounds and paid at least $300,000 in fines. He actually became the first Cavalier voted in as a starter in the All-Star Game, but the accomplishment was overshadowed by a Sports Illustrated story that came out at the same time claiming Kemp had fathered seven children with six different women.

13. John Lucas

-- Was a character as a player and that didn't change when he became a coach. One day when practice was winding down, Lucas wanted to end with a scrimmage, and wanted to keep the intensity level up. So he opened up a rectangular, leather, zippered wallet and pulled out $5,000 in cash to go to the winning team. He slapped the wad down, right on the practice floor at what was then Gund Arena and said "Five thousand ... on the wood ... winner take all!"

14. Damon Jones -- The self-proclaimed "world's greatest shooter" was a clothes horse who turned up in a leopard-print coat during the playoffs at Detroit. Would kick a leg into the air when dribbling, and once got called for charging when he accidentally kicked Jacques Vaughn in the face.

15. Craig Ehlo -- He got his nickname from Lucas when the two played together in Houston. They'd play for breakfast, and Ehlo lost so often that Lucas started calling him "Eggs." Great self-deprecating sense of humor. Could drive coach Lenny Wilkens batty with baffling on-court decisions, but Wilkens loved his overall play, and the two paired up in Atlanta soon after they both left the Cavs.

16. Jeff McInnis -- Had three cell phones going at all times. When he got benched, he turned his practice jersey around, declaring himself to be an independent contractor.

17. (tie) Mike Fratello

-- The fiery and flamboyant Fratello liked to be in control and didn't leave anything to chance, from his defensive assignments to his perfectly fitted suits and ties. Fans fumed when he ran a slow-down offense, but he felt it was the only way he could compete with the roster he had -- and he did make the playoffs four times in his six seasons.

17. (tie) Tyrone Hill -- Because he was afraid to fly, he once hired a limo to take him to New York. He loved to complain, and whatever team he came from was always the best. When he played in Philadelphia, the training staff coined the phrase "Ty maintenance" instead of "high maintenance."

19. George Karl -- He wasn't really ready when he took over as the team's youngest head coach at the age of 33 in 1984. A workman-like player who earned his way in the NBA by playing defense, he wanted to coach like he played. He even played World B. Free 1-on-1 after practice, confident his defense could stop him. Eventually, thanks to an intervention by Weltman, Karl realized he had to make peace with Free and revamp his coaching philosophy if the team was going to succeed. When the Cavs clinched a playoff spot later that season, they carried Karl off the court.

20. Nick Mileti -- A self-made man who was the first owner of the Cavs. But, as one panelist said of Mileti, "Million dollar plans, 10-cent budget." Of course, with four double-digit crowds in the first two seasons of play at the Cleveland Arena, it was easy to see why.

21. Walt Frazier -- His game wasn't the same as it was in New York, but his style was. He favored fur coats and wide-brimmed hats and drove a Rolls Royce. Practiced yoga long before it became fashionable for pro athletes to do so.

22. Lonnie Shelton -- A tough, tough guy who once chased New Jersey's Buck Williams into the stands to fight. He went to dinner in downtown Cleveland with his girlfriend, and a guy with a gun tried to rob them as they left. Shelton grabbed the gun, hit the guy in the head with a rock and sat on him until the police arrived, lecturing him the whole time to change his ways.

23. (tie) Drew Gooden

-- First there was the soul patch on the back of his head. Then he and DeShawn Stevenson got into a beard-growing contest. There also was the "make it rain" gesture when he hit a jumper.

23. (tie) Tim Kempton -- His claim to fame was his ability to swallow a Burger King Whopper in one gulp.

25. LeBron James -- He has become larger than life, as anyone who has seen the giant sign outside The Q can attest. Has taken the pre-game rosin toss to almost religious levels. In addition to helping choreograph the team's crazy pre-game routines, he also has displayed his inner Dancing With The Stars persona during blowouts.

26. Gary Briggs -- He spent 18 years as trainer, doubling as team psychologist, travel agent, Father Confessor, marriage counselor, bon vivant and man about town. As the trainer with the longest tenure, he has seen it all -- or heard about it.

27. Dan Gilbert -- A shrewd businessman who enjoys displaying his sense of humor during stints on the team's broadcasts, press conferences and the occasional panel discussion.

28. John Battle

-- Threatening to get a 2x4 to retaliate after being sucker-punched by George McCloud outside the Cavs locker room after a 119-115 overtime victory over the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 22, 1992, gets Battle on the list.

29. Michael Cage -- An early juicer. No, really. Juicer. Not steroids. An health-food proponent, Cage once gave juicers to everybody for Christmas.

30. Greg Dreiling -- Another guy whose main claim to fame was his appetite. Once ate a giant package of Fig Newtons on a flight.

31. (tie) Chris Gatling -- Loved the give-and-take with reporters. In fact, if you walked past him in the locker room and didn't stop to chat, he'd ask why. Once brought in a cake to celebrate not getting dealt away at the trade deadline.

31. (tie) Harvey Green -- Though the public relations director became a well-respected executive after leaving the Cavs and going to work for the New York Yankees and then the Miami Dolphins, he was a little, well, green with the Cavs. Invited to Joe Tait's house for dinner, he eschewed the lovely meal Tait's wife had prepared and ate slices of bread with catsup. He once made Tait drive across the Ambassador Bridge from Detroit to Windsor, Ontario, so he could say he'd been to Canada.

33. Kim Hughes -- He had no free-throw attempts in 331 minutes of his 45-game Cavs career, while committing 73 fouls. For those not into stats, he also painted a particular part of his anatomy green on St. Patrick's Day.

34. Earl Tatum -- The former Marquette star who played for Al McGuire was dogging it during a suicide drill during his first training camp under Stan Albeck. When the coach asked what was going on, Tatum told him, "It's a long season, coach. I'm pacing myself." He once got off the team bus and promptly got arrested for propositioning an undercover police woman -- in view of his teammates and amused onlookers. Once got injured in a game and collapsed on the foul line. Trainer Charlie Strasser rushed to him and asked, "Where did you get hurt?" Tatum lifted his head and pointed to the baseline saying, "Right over there."

35. (tie) Darius Miles

-- He never did explain the significance of bumping his forehead with his two fists after big plays.

35. (tie) Shaquille O'Neal -- Nominated for past performances. Renowned as one of the league's great pranksters, he has toned down considerably since joining the Cavs this season, although he did star in his own television show last summer, "Shaq Vs." He tweeted that he'd left a pair of his shoes along the freeway earlier this season and later dropped an autographed Sports Illustrated in the West Side Market.

37. Keith Lee -- Players used to call him "Dr. Boatman" because he was constantly saying, "I'm going to 'boat on this guy." Maybe he meant showboat?

38. Chucky Brown -- He put on a lot of miles playing for a league record-tying 12 teams in his 13-year career, but his quirky claim to fame was telling ESPN's Jim Rome that he'd made enough money so he could eat at nice restaurants like Red Lobster.

39. DeSagana Diop -- The Cavs' first-round draft choice in 2001, the eighth pick overall, the 19-year-old startled observers during his introductory press conference by saying he wanted to "dunk on Shaq." More startled than anyone were General Manager Jim Paxson and coach John Lucas.

40. Mack Calvin -- It probably says more about owner Ted Stepien or coach Bill Musselman, but Calvin, a former ABA All-Star guard, was 32 and retired, driving a beer truck in Denver, when the Cavs signed him in December, 1980. The Cavs worked him out against Case Western Reserve star Mark Termini, now a well-respected NBA agent, who got the best of Calvin in a game of one-on-one.