List of basketball nicknames

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of nicknames in the sport of professional basketball.

Contents 1 Players 1.1 First name basis 2 Teams 3 Courts 4 Moves 5 See also

[edit] Players

• "3D" - Boris Diaw (After his jersey number, and his 3-Dimensional play)
• "A-Train" - Vin Baker and Artis Gilmore
• "The Admiral" – David Robinson (he played at Annapolis, and served in the United States Navy for two years after graduation before being allowed to play in the NBA)
• "Agent Zero" - Gilbert Arenas
• "A.I." – Allen Iverson (his initials)
• "A.I. 2" – Andre Iguodala (his initials plus the two, since Allen Iverson is the original AI)
• "Air Canada" - Vince Carter (when he played for the Toronto Raptors)
• "Air Jordan" - Michael Jordan
• "Air Zaire" – Dikembe Mutombo
• "Air France"- Mickaël Piétrus
• "Air Gordon"- Ben Gordon (a play on the nickname Air Jordan for Michael Jordan)
• "Anakonda"- Chris Bosh
• "AK-47" – Andrei Kirilenko; after his initials, jersey number, and with a play on the famous Soviet assault rifle (which was coincidentally designed in his birthplace of Izhevsk)
• "The Answer" – Allen Iverson
• "Ap" - Anthony Parker
• "BD" - Baron Davis(his initials)
• "B-Diddy" - Baron Davis
• "Baby Al" - Al Harrington
• "Baby Shaq" – Sofoklis Schortsanitis, from his alleged resemblance to Shaquille O'Neal, plus his slightly smaller size than O'Neal
• "B-Dazzled" - Baron Davis
• "Big-O" – Oscar Robertson
• "Big Al" – Al Jefferson
• "The Big Aristotle" – Shaquille O'Neal
• "Big Ben" – Ben Wallace
• "The Big Cat" - Jamaal Magloire
• "Big Country" – Bryant Reeves
• "The Big Diesel" – Shaquille O'Neal
• "The Big Dipper" – Wilt Chamberlain
• "Big Dog" – Glenn Robinson and Antoine Carr
• "The Big Drizzle" – Drew Gooden (His old nickname was "The Truth", now owned by Paul Pierce)
• "The Big Fundamental" – Tim Duncan
• "Big Game James" – James Worthy
• "Big Nasty" - Corliss Williamson
• "Big Red" – Arvydas Sabonis
• "Big Shot Bob" – Robert Horry
• "Big Sleep" – Tracy McGrady
• "The Big Smooth" – Sam Perkins
• "Big Smooth" - Charlie Villanueva
• "Biedrs" (Latvian for "Partner") - Andris Biedrins
• "Big Snacks" - Jerome James
• "Big Sofo" – Sofoklis Schortsanitis
• "The Big Ticket" – Kevin Garnett
• "Brazilian Blur"- Leandro Barbosa
• "Big Z" - Zydrunas Ilgauskas
• "Bird Man" - Chris Andersen
• "Black Cat" – Michael Jordan
• "Fade" - Kobe Bryant
• "The Black President" - Gilbert Arenas
• "The Brazilian Beast" - Nenê
• "Bron Bron" - LeBron James
• "Boom Dizzle" - Baron Davis
• "The Blonde Bomber" - Dirk Nowitzki
• "Buc The World" - Greg Buckner
• "The Cambyman" - Marcus Camby
• "The Captain" – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• "Captain Canada" - Steve Nash (nickname often used by Sportsnet broadcasters)
• "Captain Crunch" - Jalen Rose
• "Captain Kirk" - Kirk Hinrich
• "The Cat" - Cuttino Mobley
• "CB4" - Chris Bosh
• "Chapu" - Andrés Nocioni
• "The Chief" – Robert Parish (after the mute, expressionless character in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest)
• "Chocolate Thunder" – Darryl Dawkins
• "The Chosen One" - LeBron James
• "Clyde" – Walt Frazier (after the film Bonnie and Clyde, due to his flamboyant clothes)
• "Clyde the Glide" – Clyde Drexler
• "CP3" - Chris Paul
• "The Croatian Sensation" – Toni Kukoč; rhyming play on his Croatian origin
• "C-Webb" - Chris Webber
• "D12" - Dwight Howard
• "The Daily Double" - Dwight Howard (for his consistent scoring and rebounding)
• "Damp" - Erick Dampier
• "Det the Threat" – Detlef Schrempf
• "Diesel" – Shaquille O'Neal
• "The Dinka Dunker" - Manute Bol
• "Dirk Diggler" – Dirk Nowitzki (after the fictional porn star character in 1997 film Boogie Nights)
• "Caveman" – Dirk Nowitzki
• "Disco Dirk" - Dirk Nowitzki
• "D-Marsh" - Donyell Marshall
• "D-Miles" - Darius Miles
• "D-Wade" – Dwyane Wade
• "D-West" - Delonte West
• "Dr. Dunkenstein" - Darrell Griffith
• "Dr. J" – Julius Erving
• "Dollar Bill" – Bill Bradley
• "The Dove" - Nadav Henefeld
• "The Dream" – Hakeem Olajuwon
• "The Dunking Dutchman" – Rik Smits
• "Dynasty" – Yao Ming; given by ex-teammate Steve Francis, pertaining to the Ming Dynasty
• "Earl the Pearl" – Earl Monroe
• "The East Coast Assassin" - Gilbert Arenas
• "El Contusione" – Manu Ginobili
• "Employee Number 8" - Antoine Walker
• "Flash" - Dwyane Wade; named after a superhero: Flash
• "Flip" - Ronald Murray
• "Floppy" - Manu Ginobili
• "The Future" -Carmelo Anthony
• "Get Buckets" - Ricky Davis
• "G-Force" - Gerald Wallace
• "Garbage Man" - Michael Bradley
• "Gil" - Gilbert Arenas
• "G.P." - Gary Payton
• "God" – Michael Jordan
• "Godzilla" - Yao Ming (his height and his Asian ancestry)
• "Grandmama" - Larry Johnson (from his role in a Nike commercial in which he portrayed his own grandmother)
• "The Great Wall of China" – Yao Ming
• "Grits N Gravy" - Ricky Davis
• "H2O" – Allan Houston (after his jersey number)
• "Hair Canada" – Steve Nash
• "Half Man, Half Amazing" - Vince Carter (after his performance in the 2000 dunk contest)
• "Hedo" or "Hido" - Hidayet Türkoğlu
• "Heir Apparent" - Kobe Bryant
• "Hibachi" - Gilbert Arenas
• "His Airness" – Michael Jordan
• "His Heinous" – Bill Laimbeer
• "The Hick from French Lick" – Larry Bird
• "Hoffa" - Rafael Araújo
• "Hondo" - John Havlicek (after the John Wayne movie)
• "Hot Plate" - John Sam Williams, normally referred to as simply John Williams; nickname from his large girth, and to distinguish him from John "Hot Rod" Williams. Both of these John Williamses entered the NBA in 1986 from colleges in Louisiana ("Hot Plate" from LSU, "Hot Rod" from Tulane).
• "Hot Rod" - Rodney Hundley and later John Williams (not to be confused with John "Hot Plate" Williams)
• "The Human Eraser" – Marvin Webster
• "The Human Highlight Film" – Dominique Wilkins
• "The Human Victory Cigar" – Darko Milicic (because of his extremely limited playtime)
• "The Hurt" - Kurt Thomas
• "The Iceman" – George Gervin
• "Iggy" - Andre Iguodala
• "Indiana Jones" - Fred Jones (plays for the Indiana Pacers)
• "LBJ" - LeBron James
• "J-Chill" - Josh Childress
• "J-Dub" - Jason Williams
• "J-Smoove" - Josh Smith
• "The Jester" - Gilbert Arenas
• "Jesus Shuttlesworth" – Ray Allen (after his role in He Got Game)
• "The Jet" - Jason Terry and Kenny Smith
• "J-Rich" - Jason Richardson
• "J. Will" - Jason Williams
• "J.J." - Joe Johnson
• "Joe Cool" - Joe Johnson
• "Jungle Jim" – Jim Loscutoff
• "Junk Yard Dog" – Jerome Williams (for his willingness to do the dirty work)
• "Kandi Man" - Michael Olowokandi
• "KG" – Kevin Garnett (his initials)
• "Kid Canada" - Steve Nash
• "Killer" – Reggie Miller
• "King James" - LeBron James
• "King of Clutch" - Reggie Miller
• "K-Mart" - Kenyon Martin
• "The Kobe Stopper" - Ruben Patterson (based on his defensive performances on Kobe)
• "The Jordan Stopper" - Kobe Bryant
• "Little General" - Avery Johnson
• "Little New York"- Carmelo Anthony
• "LJ" - Larry Johnson
• "(The) L-Train" - Lionel Simmons
• "Larry Legend" – Larry Bird
• "Le Roi" (French for "The King") - Antoine Rigaudeau
• "Lord of the Rings" - Kobe Bryant
• "Mad Dog" – Mark Madsen
• "Madison Square Gordon" – Ben Gordon
• "Magic" – Earvin Johnson
• "Il Mago"-Andrea Bargnani
• "The Mailman" – Karl Malone ("a mailman always delivers")
• "The Mamba" - Kobe Bryant
• "The Man Child" -Dwight Howard
• "The Matrix" – Shawn Marion (after the film)
• "The Mayor" – Fred Hoiberg; given to him by his Iowa State teammates because of his extraordinary popularity in the school's home city of Ames, Iowa, where he was raised
• "The Meeks" - Chamique Holdsclaw, Semeka Randall, and Tamika Catchings; used when all three were teammates at the University of Tennessee
• "Melo" - Carmelo Anthony
• "The Microwave" – Vinnie Johnson ("gets hot instantly")
• "The Mitten" – Gary Payton (he has lost a step on defense with age, so now he fits more like a mitten than a glove")
• "Mighty Mouse" - Damon Stoudamire
• "Miller Time" - Reggie Miller
• "The Ming Dynasty" - Yao Ming
• "Miracle" - Milt Palacio
• "Mr. Big Shot" - Chauncey Billups
• "Mr. Clutch" – Jerry West
• "MJ" – Michael Jordan
• "Monster Mash" – Jamal Mashburn; a play on his surname with the Bobby Pickett song, "Monster Mash", also a nod to his natural good looks
• "Moochie" - Martyn Norris
• "Mookie" - Daron Blaylock
• "MoPete" - Morris Peterson
• "MP2" - Mickaël Piétrus
• "Moore Bang For Your Buckets" - Mikki Moore
• "Nasty Nash" – Steve Nash
• "Nashty" - Steve Nash
• "Nick at Night" - Nick Van Exel
• "Nick the Quick" – Nick Van Exel
• "Not in my house"- Dikembe Mutombo
• "Oh My Bosh!!" – Chris Bosh
• "The Owl without a Vowel" – Bill Mlkvy
• "P Double" - Paul Pierce
• "Penny" - Anfernee Hardaway
• "Pip" - Scottie Pippen
• "Pistol Pete" – Pete Maravich
• "Pitchin' Paul" – Paul Arizin
• "Pit Bull" – Mike James
• "Plastic Man" - Stacey Augmon
• "The Prince of Darkness" – Bill Laimbeer
• "Q" - Quentin Richardson
• "Q-Rich" - Quentin Richardson
• "The Red Rocket" - Matt Bonner
• "Redd Hot" - Michael Redd
• "Redz" - Delonte West
• "Reef" - Shareef Abdur-Rahim
• "The Reignman" – Shawn Kemp
• "Rip" - Richard Hamilton
• "Ron Ron" – Ron Artest
• "Rooney" - Šarūnas Marčiulionis
• "The Round Mound of Rebound" – Charles Barkley
• "R-Wall" - Rasheed Wallace
• "Saba" or "Sabas" - Arvydas Sabonis
• "Sam I Am" - Sam Cassell
• "Saras" or "Sharas" - Šarūnas Jasikevičius
• "Shaq" - Shaquille O'Neal
• "Shaq Diesel" - Gerald Wallace
• "Shaquie Chan" – Yao Ming, a play on the names of basketball legend Shaquille O'Neal and Chinese actor and martial artist Jackie Chan
• "Sheed" – Rasheed Wallace
• "The Show" - Harold Arceneaux
• "Silk" – Jamaal Wilkes
• "Sir Charles" – Charles Barkley
• "Skip to My Lou" – Rafer Alston
• "Spanish Chocolate" – Sergio Rodriguez
• "Speedy" – Craig Claxton
• "Spider" – John Salley
• "The Stache" – Adam Morrison
• "Starbury" – Stephon Marbury
• "STAT" - Amare Stoudemire (Standing Tall and Talented)
• "The Stro Show" - Stromile Swift
• "Stevie Franchise" - Steve Francis
• "Sugar" - Ray Allen
• "Tee Bee" - Terrell Brandon
• "Thunder Dan" – Dan Majerle
• "Tim Bug" – Tim Hardaway
• "Tiny" – Nate Archibald
• "T-Mac" - Tracy McGrady
• "Too Easy" - Baron Davis
• "Tough Juice" - Caron Butler
• "T.P." - Tony Parker
• "T-Tom" - Tim Thomas
• "The Glove" – Gary Payton (his defense "held" opponents like a "baseball in a glove")
• "The Tractor" – Robert Traylor
• "The Truth" – Paul Pierce
• "The Veal" - Brian Scalabrine
• "Vinsanity" – Vince Carter
• "Wally World" - Wally Szczerbiak
• "White Chocolate" – Jason Williams
• "White Mike" – Mike Miller
• "Wife-Beater" - Jason Kidd (Was called this by the Celtics fans during the 2002 ECF)
• "Wilt the Stilt" – Wilt Chamberlain
• "Wince" – Vince Carter (For his tendency to get hurt)
• "The Worm" – Dennis Rodman (for his wriggling when he played pinball)
• "The X-Man" – Xavier McDaniel; play on the initial of his first name with the X-Men, a group of superheroes
• "Z" – Žydrūnas Ilgauskas
• "Z-bo" – Zach Randolph
• "Zeke" – Isiah Thomas
• "Zo" - Alonzo Mourning

[edit] First name basis

The following players are usually referred to by their given name only:

• Alonzo - Alonzo Mourning
• Amaré - Amare Stoudemire
• Baron - Baron Davis
• Carmelo - Carmelo Anthony
• Dirk - Dirk Nowitzki
• Gilbert - Gilbert Arenas
• Hakeem - Hakeem Olajuwon
• Isiah - Isiah Thomas
• Hedo - Hidayet Turkoglu
• Kareem - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• Kobe - Kobe Bryant
• Larry - Larry Bird
• LeBron - LeBron James
• Magic - Earvin "Magic" Johnson
• Manu - Manu Ginobili (A contraction of his real first name of Emanuel.)
• Memo - Mehmet Okur
• Michael - Michael Jordan
• Nenê - Nenê (Hilario) (Born Maybyner Rodney Hilario, he was nicknamed Nenê as a child, and like many Brazilian athletes, he was generally known by his nickname. However, unlike most, he actually adopted his nickname as his legal name, though not until after he came to the NBA.)
• Pau - Pau Gasol
• Peja - Peja Stojaković (This is a common nickname in his homeland of Serbia for his real first name of Predrag.)
• Rasheed - Rasheed Wallace
• Reggie - Reggie Miller
• Shaq - Shaquille O'Neal
• Vince - Vince Carter

[edit] Teams

• Baby Bulls - Chicago Bulls
• Blazers – Portland Trail Blazers
• Boomers – Australia men's national team
• Cavs – Cleveland Cavaliers
• The Defenders - Detroit Pistons
• The Fakers or Flakers - Los Angeles Lakers
• Gli Azzurri – Italy national team
• Heat - Miami Heat
• Jail Blazers or Jailblazers - Portland Trail Blazers
• Knicks – New York Knickerbockers ("Knickerbockers" is the team's rarely-used legal name.)
• Les Bleus – France national team
• Mavs – Dallas Mavericks
• Nugs - Denver Nuggets
• Opals - Australia women's national team
• Queens - Sacramento Kings (first used by Shaquille O'Neal)
• Raps - Toronto Raptors
• Sixers – Philadelphia 76ers
• Sonics, Hedgehogs, or Supe's – Seattle SuperSonics
• Spazz - Utah Jazz
• Texas Warriors - San Antonio Spurs
• Tall Blacks – New Zealand national team
• T'Wolves - Minnesota Timberwolves
• The Wiz - Washington Wizards
• Thuggets - Denver Nuggets

[edit] Courts

• ACC - Air Canada Centre
• Il Madison - Land Rover Arena (Bologna, Italy); a play on Madison Square Garden
• MSG - Madison Square Garden
• The World's Most Famous Arena - Madison Square Garden
• The Mecca - Madison Square Garden
• The Phone Booth - Verizon Center in Washington, DC
• The Whack Off Center-Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, PA

[edit] Moves

• Le dunk de la mort (French for "The Dunk of Death") - Vince Carter's famous dunk at the 2000 Olympics in which he literally jumped over 7'2"/2.18 m French center Frédéric Weis
• The "Hinrich Maneuver" - Kirk Hinrich's dribbling toward the basket trying to make a play
• The "Lister Blister" - A highlight dunk made by Shawn Kemp over Alton Lister in the mid-1990s
• The "UTEP Two Step"- A crossover dribble move used by former NBA great Tim Hardaway
• The "Shammgod"- A crossover dribble move used by former NBA player God Shammgod

[edit] See also

• Nickname
• List of hockey nicknames
• List of athletes by nickname