Ranking the Basketball Reference nicknames for the Atlanta Hawks’ players.
Basketball Reference is an amazing website that houses basically every basketball stat for everyone who’s ever played into an NBA game. I use it daily, and find myself drifting through random players’ pages just for fun. One feature always stands out on those pages: the nickname(s) under the players name. Some are well known, such as Atlanta Hawks’ point guard Trae Young‘s ‘Ice Trae’ moniker.
Others, like Andre Drummond‘s ‘Big Penguin’ and Cody Zeller‘s ‘The Big Handsome’ are as surprising as they’re hilarious. Other gems like those exist, and the best nicknames are the ones that are never used.
Here, I wanted to rank all of the nicknames that current members of the Atlanta Hawks have, which we’ll get to soon.
Before that however, it came to my attention that a lot of the Hawks don’t have any nicknames on Basketball Reference. I felt bad for these guys, as they’re missing out on potentially being called the ‘The Big Penguin’ or something similar.
These nickname-less players are below, and I floated them a moniker that may find its way onto Basketball Reference one day.
De’Andre Hunter: Big Game
I’m not much of a Hunter myself, but I do know that ‘game’ has something to do with the sport/hobby/survival tactic. He was considered a clutch player in college, always showing up in the important games (including the National Championship) for Virginia, and maybe if that clutch-ness translates to the NBA, De’Andre Hunter will become De’Andre ‘Big Game’ Hunter.
Damian Jones: Dameology
This isn’t listed as a nickname, but is Jones’ Twitter handle. I like it.
DeAndre’ Bembry: Bem
I don’t know. ‘Bembry’ has such smooth roll off the tongue that it’s not really worth giving him a nickname. I suppose you could shorten it to just ‘Bem’ and it’s just as effective.
Bruno Fernando: Boards
This is getting harder. Bruno starts with a b. Boards starts with a b. Bruno grabs boards….
Brandon Goodwin: Goody two points
Combining the phrase goody two shoes with Brandon Goodwin’s love of taking two point shots.
Jeff Teague: NBA Teague Pass
I have no idea who coined this (not me) but I’ve loved it since I saw it on Twitter. Just imagine a world that features NBA Teague Pass: a 24/7 streaming service of just Teague highlights.
Charlie Brown: Buddah
Apparently his entire family calls him this because “he’s the size of a baby.” He’s also 6-foot-6, but I’ll allow it because I had no non-Peanuts related nicknames.
Dewayne Dedmon: Phone Booth
You could have some fun with his name sounding like ‘Dead-man’, but his nickname should be cut from the same cloth as his three-point celebration.
Skal Labissière: Haitian Sensation
In a 2016 interview with Complex, Skal listed this as one’s he’s heard and likes. I like it too.
Treveon Graham: Trev
Anyone named Trevor, Treveon, or any name that starts with a T-r-e-v should just be called Trev.
Alright, now that those are of the way, he can rank the nicknames:
7th – Kevin Huerter: Red Mamba
I never liked anyone taking a ______ Mamba nickname before Kobe Bryant tragically died, and it just seems in bad taste now. Luckily, another red-hair-related nickname later on this list has caught on more for Huerter.
6th – Cam Reddish: Killer Cam
Like Kevin Huerter‘s Red Mamba, Cam Reddish‘s Killer Cam is suffering from originality. A good nickname should be able to be Google’d and have the play pop up first. A quick search of Killer Cam has rapper Cam’ron at the top, specifically his 2004 classic ‘Killa Cam.’ Further, ‘Cam’ is already technically a nickname on its own, with Cameron Reddish being his “real” name.
5th – John Collins: JC
The first moniker for John Collins on this list is simply his initials, which is incredibly overused across the sports landscape. I have called Collins JC on occasion, but it is a bit tame considering his other name on this list.
4th – Kevin Huerter: Red Velvet
Also stylized as “R3D V3Lv3T,” the nickname perfectly covers Huerter’s sparkling red hair and silky smooth deep shot. It’s a top tier nickname at it’s placement at #4 speaks to the strength of his teammates’.
3rd- Clint Capela: Swiss Bank
Clint Capela hasn’t played in a game yet for the Atlanta Hawks, but I can’t wait until he does for I can start working Swiss Bank references into pieces. The Switzerland born center is the highest-earning team athlete in his countries’ history, and makes them proud with this cheeky nickname.
2nd- John Collins: John the Baptist
Every rim-shattering dunk is a baptism. Perfection.
1st- Trae Young: Ice Trae
There were round table discussions among scholars debating the best Trae Young’s best nickname coming into the league, and while it was up in the air for a while, an endorsement by rapper Quavo locked in Ice Trae.
Less of a nickname and more of a superhero-esque alter ego, Trae ‘transforms’ into Ice Trae when his shot is at the coldest. It’s not often that being compared to something in your Grandma’s freezer is a cool thing, but somehow, this works perfectly.
The Official Vince Carter Nickname Ranking
If you noticed someone missing on the previous two slides, you’d be correct. I left out the 43-year-old Vince Carter purposely, as he nearly has as many nicknames as the rest of his teammates combined.
The future Hall of Famer owns six monikers on Basketball Reference, although not all are winners. Let’s rank them.
6th- Air Canada
This one hasn’t aged very well, as Vince hasn’t played for Toronto since the ’04-’05 season, and isn’t from the northern Nation either. It doesn’t pass the Google test, as unless you want to book a ticket aboard Air Canada Airlines, there’s no need to search it.
5th- Sunshine
I’ve never heard anyone call Carter this one, and the nickname 100% belongs to Sunshine Ronnie Bass from Remember the Titans.
4th- Flying Man
I’ve also never heard anyone call Vince Flying Man, and it’s a half-baked version of the #1 name on this list.
3th- VC
Yes, initials are overplayed and boring, but this one gets bonus points because that’s what I call him most. I’m not going to rank all the letters of the alphabet, but V and C work well together.
2nd- Vinasnity
Vince Carter is a rare athlete who has two truly great nicknames, and Vinsanity is a great describer of his hectic style of dunks. Vinsanity was a movement during his breakout seasons and the nickname is a grand remembrance of those years.
1st- Half Man, Half Amazing
Long nicknames are rarely effective, and this might be the best example of one succeeding. No one in the NBA has been a more fericious dunker, and he’ll go down as one of best slammers in the history of the sport.
Similarly, half man, half amazing will go down has one of the NBA’s all time great nicknames.