Perpetually sullen, arrogant, and undeniably short-tempered, Kageyama originally came off as a typical overbearing perfectionist, caring only about winning and completely disregarding the opinions and well-being of his teammates. His habit of complaining about their performance and barking orders at them eventually led the other players in Kitagawa Daiichi to nickname him the "King of the Court," a constant reminder of the oppressive, egocentric attitude he demonstrated during his volleyball career in junior high.

Unbeknownst to the majority of his schoolmates and acquaintances, however, he is much more sensitive and childish than he appears to be; he simply does not know how to control his frustration, and hence expresses his thoughts and emotions in an inappropriate way. After everyone in Kitagawa Daiichi became fed up with him and abandoned his side, Kageyama was filled with genuine regret and developed an intense fear of being despised and mistrusted but refused to openly discuss his problem until Tsukishima confronted him about it.