NBA Considering Nicknames On Back Of Jerseys
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – If the National Basketball Association goes through with a plan to let players on the Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets wear nicknames on the back of their jerseys, somewhere WWE owner Vince McMahon will probably be laughing.
The NBA is reportedly considering letting players wear nicknames like King James, The Truth, Three, and KG on the backs of their jerseys. The plan would only involve the Heat and Nets initially, though it's unclear if the teams would wear the jerseys or if they would wear them against opponents.
If the plan sounds familiar, it's because several years ago when McMahon tried to start a professional football league; he allowed players to wear nicknames like "He Hate Me" on the back of their jerseys during games.
Players, according to the Associated Press, were asked to submit what names they'd put on their jerseys. LeBron James is expected to wear "King James," Dwyane Wade is expected to wear "Three" or "D-Wade."
Brooklyn Nets forward Paul Pierce could go with "The Truth" while fellow Nets power forward Kevin Garnett could go with either KG or "The Big Ticket."
Miami forward Shane Battier — who wasn't exactly thrilled about the nickname idea — said he wanted to wear "Batman" on his jersey, though was told that Warner Brothers holds the rights to that name, and other players have also had to deal with copyright-related issues with their suggested monikers. Battier said he'll go with "Shaneo" instead.
"Fans will like it and so will a lot of the players," Allen said. "Guys will get a good kick out of it."
And somewhere, Vince McMahon will get a chuckle as another professional sports league copies an idea of his from his widely-mocked football league that went nowhere.
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