Twenty-seven truly unique basketball player names
Image: Amanda Mack/Getty Images
Basketball players herald from all over the world, but for this list, we tried to find the craziest names among American players.
- Adolph “Dolph” Schayes: This hall of famer played his entire 16-year career with the Philadelphia 76ers (originally known as the Syracuse Nationals).
- Anfernee Deon “Penny” Hardaway: The 6 foot 7 inches tall point guard played for the Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic, New York Knicks and Miami Heat. He retired in 2007.
- Bismack Biyombo Sumba: Before becoming a Toronto Raptor, Biyombo was drafted by the Sacramento Kings and then traded to the Charlotte Hornets.
- Cherokee Bryan Parks: Parks’ name pays tribute to his maternal great-grandmother, who was a member of the Cherokee tribe. The former Duke standout played professionally for Dallas, Minnesota, Vancouver, Los Angeles, San Antonio, Washington and Golden State.
- Commander King: Coach King played college ball for Irvine Valley College and Northern Arizona University before becoming a respected high school basketball coach in Flagstaff.
- Darko Mili?i?: The Serbian pro basketball player was drafted by the Detroit Pistons as the second overall pick in 2003. He played for the Pistons, Magic, Grizzlies, Knicks and Timberwolves before returning to Serbia to play for Metalac Farmakom.
- Elgin Gay Baylor: Baylor was the No. 1 draft pick in 1958, NBA Rookie of the Year in 1959, an 11-time NBA All-Star and a hall of famer. He later spent 22 years as general manager of the Los Angeles Clippers.
- God Shammgod: Formerly known as Shammgod Wells, he played for the Wizards before moving on to pro ball in China, Poland and Saudi Arabia.
- God’sgift Achiuwa: The St. John’s forward is 6 foot 8 inches tall and boasts an impressive 87-inch wingspan.
- Ime Sunday Udoka: The Nigerian-American pro is currently an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs.
- Jamario Raman Moon: Moon has played for the Harlem Globetrotters, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers and Charlotte Bobcats, among others.
- Jrue Randall Holiday: After playing for just one season at UCLA, Holiday was drafted by the 76ers, where he played for four seasons before being traded to the New Orleans Pelicans.
- K.C. Jones: K.C. (that’s his full given name) is a retired player and coach with 11 NBA championships as player, assistant coach and head coach.
- Kobe Bean Bryant: After being recognized as the top high school basketball player in the nation, Bryant went straight to the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets.
- Koko Archibong: The Nigerian-American Archibong played college ball for the University of Pennsylvania and pro ball in France, Germany and Poland.
- Lafayette “Fat” Lever: The former player currently serves as the director of player development for the Sacramento Kings.
- Longar Longar: The Oklahoma Sooner standout appeared in 25 career NBA Development League games with Los Angeles and Bakersfield.
- Majestic Mapp: The child prodigy from New York City, Mapp went on to play at the University of Virginia but was quickly sidelined by serious injuries.
- Marreese Akeem Speights: Speights declared himself eligible for the drafter after his sophomore season in Florida. He was drafted by the 76ers in the first round and later played for the Grizzlies and Cavaliers. He currently plays for the Golden State Warriors.
- Nana Papa Yaw Dwene “Pops” Mensah-Bonsu: The British pro played for George Washington University but was not drafted upon graduation. He then signed on with the Dallas Mavericks where he played just 12 games.
- Royal Terence Ivey: The former pro is now an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA Development League.
- Scientific Mapp: The brother of Majestic Mapp, above, was a point guard for Florida A&M.
- Slater Nelson “Dugie” Martin Jr.: The hall of famer was a defensive player for the Minneapolis Lakers and the St. Louis Hawks during the 1950s.
- Vassilis Spanoulis: Spanoulis plays for Olympiacos Piraeus of the Greek Basketball League and was the All-Europe Player of the Year in 2012 and 2013.
- Yinka Dare: The 7 foot 2 inches Dare played just four seasons in the NBA before suffering a heart attack at the age of 31.
- Yinka Dare (Oct. 10, 1972 – Jan. 9, 2004) was a Nigerian professional basketball player. A 7 foot 1-1/2 inches (217 centimeters), 265 pound (120.2 kilograms) center, he played four seasons in the National Basketball Association. In 2004, Dare died at only 31 years of age after suffering a heart attack.
- Zarko Cabarkapa: The Montenegrin player was a first-round draft pick in 2003. He suffered an injury during that first season with the Suns, who subsequently traded him to the Warriors. Further injuries ended his career in 2006.
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