October 23-24, 2010 - fresh weekend SPORTS NAME knowledge

Great athletes. Better names.
magic johnson
Okay, okay, Magic isn't his real name, but Earvin is almost as cool, and this just seems like the perfect name for a guy like this...and his unfortunate sexually transmitted disease.
larry bird
If God were to invent the perfect white basketball player, I don't think you could come up with a more perfect name for that player than Larry Bird.
zola budd
Mary Decker Slaney probably doesn't consider Zola her bud, but she does have an awesome name, and she used to run barefoot! All that helped her edge out Uwe Blab for this spot.
bjorn borg
Growing up, as a child, I remember being a little bit fearful of Bjorn Borg. Not sure if it was the name, or the hair/beard combo.
jack glasscock
No one could compete with the nicknames of 19th century baseball players like Old Hoss Radbourn and Orator Shafer...except for Jack Glasscock, who apparently did not need a nickname.
god shammgod
College basketball has had its share of great names, perhaps none better than the guy whose parents apparently weren't satisfied with just having god in their son's last name.
baskerville holmes
How to get your kid beat up in grade school 101, as told by Baskerville Holmes' parents.
rollie fingers
Anyone with the last name Fingers would be cool. Throw in the mustache and the cool first name, and you have a legendary name.
duany duany
At first, this might seem like the most unoriginal first name choice ever…but then you think why has no one else thought of it before…except maybe Duran Duran's parents.
cassius clay
Did you know there was a man named Cassius Clay who was actually a 19th century politician and abolitionist? The second coming was more famous, even though he wasn't known as Cassius Clay for most of his career.

best SPORTS NAME

tershbango says…
Coco Crisp. I know, it seems kinda silly to call a grown man "Coco," until you consider that his real name is Covelli Loyce Crisp.
wetookthebait says…
Dick Trickle. Why do I get the feeling that in 30-40 years, there will no longer be anyone in the United States named "Dick."
BarryFromTexas says…
World B. Free. I guess this dude was kinda like Chad Ochocinco before Chad Ochocinco. One of the more bizarre name changes of all time.