By TR Robertson
Sports athletes nicknames have been around ever since we have had sports teams. It seems for some reason nicknames are a little hard to find these days. To get a nickname the athlete needs to accomplish outstanding performance in their sport enough to justify a nickname being given from some source. For example, current New York Yankee power hitter Aaron Judge has been referred to as All Rise and as the captain of the 2026 World Classic USA Baseball Team the nickname Captain America is being suggested. Nicknames come from a variety of places. Some are given to athletes by sports writers, some come from fans, teammates or coaches, some might even come from advertising agencies (like Michael Jordan called Air Jordan to go with the line of shoes produced by Nike), and some might even come from the athlete themselves. Some sports nicknames are easy to recall as to who the athlete might be. For example, Pistol Pete is the one and only Pete Maravich, Hammerin’ Hank everyone knows is Hank Aaron, Wilt Chamberlain is Will the Stilt and boxer Ray Leonard everyone knows as Sugar Ray. But how many will you be able to match if the athlete’s name and the nicknames are mixed up? Print out the following list and see if you can match the athlete with his or her nickname. The correct list follows the quiz, but don’t cheat. Wait until you take a shot of seeing just how many sports nicknames you know. There are 30 athletes listed from many sports. The nicknames are mixed up. Many of these nicknames go back many years, but if you know your sports trivia you should remember hearing the athlete and their nickname mentioned at some time. Have fun and you might even add to your sports knowledge. Maybe even think about what your nickname would be if you played a sport professionally.
Athlete Nicknames (mixed up – which one belongs to the athlete in the numbered list)
1. Nikola Jokic The Snake
2. Wille Mays Sweetness
3. William Perry Crazy Legs
4. Jerome Bettis The Sheriff
5. Walter Payton The Great One
6. Wayne Gretsky The Peoples Champ
7. David Ortiz The Captain
8. Jerry West The Bus
9. Deion Sanders Charlie Hustle
10. Earvin Johnson The Iron Horse
11. George Herman Ruth The Admiral
12. Derek Jeter The Joker
13. George Gervin The Mailman
14. Giannis Antetokounmpo Big Papi
15. Shaquille O’Neal The Fridge
16. Charles Barkley The Big Hurt
17. Kobe Bryant The Say Hey Kid
18. Mariano Rivera White Mamba
19. Reggie Jackson The Logo
20. Karl Malone The Greek Freak
21. David Robinson Babe
22. Kenny Stabler Mr. October
23. Diana Tarasi The Minister of Defense
24. Muhammed Ali The Iceman
25. Peyton Manning Black Mamba
26. Pete Rose The Great Round Mound of Rebound
27. Reggie White Magic
28. Frank Thomas The Sandman
29. Lou Gehrig Prime Time
30. Elroy Hirsch Diesel
The Correct Matches – Let’s see how you did
Names Nicknames
1. Nikola Jokic The Joker
2. Willie Mays The Say Hey Kid
3. William Perry The Fridge
4. Jerome Bettis The Bus
5. Walter Payton Sweetness
6. Wayne Gretzky The Great One
7. David Ortiz Big Popi
8. Jerry West The Logo
9. Deion Sanders Prime Time
10. Earvin Johnson Magic
11. George Herman Ruth Babe
12. Derek Jeter The Captain
13. George Gervin The Iceman
14. Giannis Antetokounmpo The Greek Freak
15. Shaquille O’Neal Diesel
16. Charles Barkley The Great Round Mound of Rebound
17. Kobe Bryant Black Mamba
18. Mariano Rivera The Sandman
19. Reggie Jackson Mr. October
20. Karl Malone The Mailman
21. David Robinson The Admiral
22. Kenny Stabler The Snake
23. Diana Taurasi White Mamba
24. Muhammed Ali The Peoples Champ
25. Peyton Manning The Sheriff
26. Pete Rose Charlie Hustle
27. Reggie White The Minister of Defense
28. Frank Thomas The Big Hurt
29. Lou Gehrig The Iron Horse
30. Elroy Hirsch Crazy Legs
