Among the 30 teams in the NBA, 9 are named after animals. When these teams were first named, some were voted by fans, some were linked to local history, and some were meaningful and had a certain meaning. Some of them have meanings, some of them are bizarre, and they are named like this for almost no valid reason.
Milwaukee Bucks: It is easy to tell from the name that deer play an important role in the local area. Wisconsin, where Milwaukee is located, is indeed rich in this wildlife. The Bucks entered the NBA in 1968. The judges selected "Bucks" from more than 1,400 names, and the winner who named the team received a car as a reward.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Minnesota is the main habitat of timber wolves in the United States, so this name was easily chosen. In fact, there was another name Jiji that competed with it. However, when they entered the NBA in 1989, the Timberwolves finally received 2/3 support in the naming vote.
Memphis Grizzlies: Another rather uncreative way to name the club because grizzlies are abundant in the area where the club is located. However, the Grizzlies, who only joined the NBA in 1995, were originally in Vancouver, where there are 20,000 Canadian grizzlies. Although the team later moved to Memphis, the team name stuck. In the original naming contest, other names competing with grizzly bears included "Dragon", "Vulture", "Big Mountain", etc.
Atlanta Hawks: Atlanta is not rich in hawks. The name comes from the name of an Indian chief. When the Indians give birth to a child, the child is named after what the first person who comes to visit says he saw. The most famous warrior among the Indians was Black Hawk, the leader of the Sauk people in the 1830s. Settled in Milwaukee in 1951 and changed their name to the Eagles. Although he later moved to Atlanta, his name was not changed.
New Orleans Hornets: As early as the Revolutionary War, the colonial British general Charles Cornwallis wrote to the King of England: "A war in this place is like a war in a hive." Representative of the Hornets He captured the spirit of the people of North Carolina and finally won the competition for the name. Originally it was actually called the "Charlotte Spirit", and was also translated as the "Charlotte Ghosts", which has always been opposed by North Carolina fans. The team did not change its name after moving to New Orleans.
Dallas Mavericks: The original meaning of "Mavericks" on the Mavericks team logo is maverick, and should be interpreted as the Mavericks (horses) that were not branded in the old West or the Mavericks (horses) that left the team and got lost. , the animal on the team logo looks like a horse, and has nothing to do with a cow. The name Mavericks commemorates the local western cowboy life, because "unbranded calves" often stray into other people's fields to graze. Although they don't understand the rules, they represent a fearless spirit. "Maverick" was the cream of the crop selected from more than 4,600 names.