I was bored tonight so I came up with a time filler. There are a few NBA team nicknames whose origins I don’t know. So I gave myself a little project: find the origins of each NBA team nickname. Here are my findings (most of them are from Wikipedia and sportsencyclopedia.com). I don't expect much discussion, but for anybody who was curious why the Atlanta Hawks or Indiana Pacers were called what they are, I hope this is entertaining.
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Atlanta Hawks: Originally the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, named after the Black Hawk War (1832) fought in Illinois, the name was shortened to the Hawks when the team moved to Milwaukee.
Boston Celtics: Named after the Original Celtics, who were probably named that to attract fans from the Irish neighborhoods of Boston. (edit: As pointed out below, the Original Celtics were a barnstorming team based in New York, not Boston.)
Charlotte Bobcats: A contest came up with the Bobcats, Flight and Dragons.
Chicago Bulls: Chicago is known for its meatpacking. Hence, bulls.
Cleveland Cavaliers: A contest came up with Cavaliers, Jays, Foresters and Presidents.
Dallas Mavericks: Named after the TV show Maverick because actor James Garner was a member of the ownership group.
Denver Nuggets: Originally the Denver Larks and Rockets in the ABA, as they anticipated moving to the NBA were the Houston Rockets already had that name, they held a contest in 1974 to choose a new name. The Nuggets name won, having been the name of the 1949-50 NBA team in Denver.
Detroit Pistons: The owner of the Fort Wayne team owned a foundry that made pistons for car, truck and train engines.
Golden State Warriors: Generic name chosen for the Philadelphia Warriors.
Houston Rockets: Originally the San Diego Rockets because San Diego is ‘a city in motion’.
Indiana Pacers: Chosen because of the “state’s rich history with the harness racing pacers and the pace car used for the running of the Indianapolis 500”
Los Angeles Clippers: When the Buffalo Braves moved to San Diego in 1978, the team changed its name to the Clippers presumably because of the large naval presence in San Diego.
Los Angeles Lakers: Originally the Minneapolis Lakers, named after the thousands of lakes in the state.
Memphis Grizzlies: Originally they were supposed to be called the Vancouver Mounties, but the Royal Canadian Mounted Police objected, so they changed the name to Grizzlies, after the grizzly bear, which is native to British Columbia. (edit: Originally I had it Memphis Grizzles, which is a far better name than Grizzlies, come to think of it)
Miami Heat: Contest was held, with the Heat beating out Flamingos and Waves
Milwaukee Bucks: Contest was held and Bucks was chosen because ‘Bucks are spirited, good jumpers, fast and agile’.
Minnesota Timberwolves: A contest was held where that name was chosen because Minnesota has the largest population of timberwolves in the lower 48 states.
New Jersey Nets: Originally the ‘Americans’ during the first few years of the ABA, the team changed its name to rhyme with the Mets and Jets, two other New York area teams. It also is part of a basketball hoop.
New Orleans Hornets: Originally, they were going to be called the Charlotte Spirit, but a contest came up with the Hornets, a common local team name because of “the city's fierce resistance to British occupation during the Revolutionary War, which prompted Lord General Cornwallis to refer to it as ‘a veritable nest of hornets.’"
New York Knickerbockers: The Knickerbockers were one of the first organized baseball teams in 1845. This team was founded by Alexander Cartwright, one of the fathers of baseball. He was a firefighter in the Knickerbocker Fire Engine Company, hence, he named his baseball team after the company. (Knickerbocker was a reference to a New Yorker at the time because of the traditional pants worn by the large number of Dutch New Yorkers). Presumably, the NBA team was named after this baseball team.
Oklahoma City Thunder: A reference to the region’s nasty weather and the Thunderbirds, the nickname of the 45th infantry division, which is based in OKC.
Orlando Magic: A local newspaper had a contest and the finalists were the Heat, Tropics, Juice, and Magic. A special committee selected the Magic.
Philadelphia 76ers: Originally the Syracuse Reds and Nationals, they changed their name to the 76ers after moving to Philly – home of the founding of America in 1776.
Phoenix Suns: A contest was held and the Suns was selected from the entries.
Portland Trail Blazers: A contest was held. The most popular name was Pioneers, but that was already used by Lewis and Clark College. The second most popular name was Trail Blazers.
Sacramento Kings: When the Rochester team joined the NBL in 1945-46, they held a contest and became the Royals. When the Cincinnati Royals moved to Kansas City/Omaha, KC already had a baseball team called the Royals, so the NBA team changed their name to the Kings.
San Antonio Spurs: When the Dallas Chaparrals of the ABA moved to San Antonio, they were renamed the Gunslingers. The name was changed to Spurs before the team even played its first game.
Toronto Raptors: There was interest in naming them the Huskies (after the 1946-47 NBA team), but they couldn’t come up with a logo that was different from the Minnesota Timberwolves. A nation-wide contest came up with 2000 entries, which were narrowed down to Beavers, Bobcats, Dragons, Grizzlies, Hogs, Raptors, Scorpions, T-Rex, Tarantulas, and Terriers. The Raptors were chosen, perhaps in response to the very popular Jurassic Park movie.
Utah Jazz: Originally the New Orleans Jazz because of the city’s rich history of jazz music.
Washington Wizards: Originally the Chicago Packers and Chicago Zephyrs, the team became the Bullets when they moved to Baltimore. Over the years, the owner of the team became uncomfortable with the name. When his friend, Israeli PM Yitzhak Rabin, was assassinated in 1995, he held a contest to select a new name. The finalists were Dragons, Express, Stallions, Sea Dogs, and Wizards. Ironically, once the Wizards name was chosen, controversy erupted because a Wizard is a rank in the Ku Klux Klan.