20 Slam Dunk Basketball-Inspired Names For Your Future Baller

The 2024 WNBA Rookie of the 12 months and first-round draft decide has made ladies’s basketball appointment viewing (lastly) since her All-American collegiate profession at Iowa. Her fan base travels nicely — Indiana Fever video games drew hundreds of thousands of eyeballs throughout Clark’s first go across the league. The title isn’t as ground-breaking because the star. Nevertheless, it’s not that frequent when spelled “Caitlin,” falling outdoors the highest 1,000 women’ child names within the Social Security Administration’s rankings for 2023.

There’s no motive you’ll be able to’t honor Caitlin Clark when you’ve got a child boy. Her final title makes that one a cinch. The title Clark is derived from the Latin phrase clericus, which interprets to “scribe” or “scholar.”

Jewell Loyd was the 2015 No. 1 decide within the WNBA draft and stars at guard for the Seattle Storm. This title may additionally resonate when you’re a fan of shiny gems and jewels (although peep the additional “L,” which you’ll take or go away when signing the start certificates.)

LeBron James went from highschool phenom to NBA first-round decide. Subsequent cease (after he’s performed taking part in on the Lakers alongside his son, Bronny)? The Corridor of Fame. Or, you might select this title for a person already within the HOF: James Worthy, who gained an NCAA championship with Michael Jordan at UNC and three NBA rings with the Lakers. He earned the nickname “Huge Sport James” for his penchant for stepping up in playoff conditions. It was the fourth hottest boy child title within the Social Safety Administration’s 2023 scores, so it will not be one of the best match when you’re on the lookout for a one-of-a-kind decide.

Becky Hammon (actual first title: Rebecca) chipped away on the glass ceiling as an assistant coach of the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs, turning into solely the second lady to carry such a put up. Hammon additionally made historical past on Dec. 30, 2020, when she turned the league’s first-ever feminine performing head coach when head coach Greg Popovich was ejected. Hammon has since gone on to win a WNBA title as head coach of the Las Vegas Aces. Rebecca Lobo, a UConn star and the New York Liberty’s first heart, is one other barrier-breaking hoopster to sport this title, so this moniker is really one for a future pioneer.

This child boy is an effective way to honor one of many WNBA’s brightest stars, Breanna Stewart, who additionally earned an Olympic gold medal with Workforce USA on the Summer time Video games. The title has Scottish roots and means “steward.”

Whereas pop-culture aficionados might assume you named your little woman after the Teenage Witch or Sabrina Carpenter, you’ll probably make no secret that Sabrina Ionescu evokes her moniker. The New York Liberty guard and former Oregon Duck is taken into account one of many GOATs of school basketball and is within the midst of an All-Star WNBA profession.

According to one analysis, infants named Kobe surged 201% in 2020 after Kobe Bryant, who spent his 20-year profession solely with the Los Angeles Lakers (after being drafted by the Charlotte Hornets), tragically died in a helicopter accident together with his daughter, Gigi. Bryant was named after the Japanese beef, however the moniker interprets into “turtle” in Swahili. (Turtles look completely different than the Black Mamba, a nickname Bryant used throughout his profession, don’t they?).

You don’t have to call your baby after an precise participant. This title is impressed by the Las Vegas Aces, the 2022 and ‘23 WNBA champions. For individuals who can’t resolve between baseball and basketball (and it’s so exhausting within the spring and fall, isn’t it?), this one is flexible: Aces are additionally star pitches.

Three-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, the Las Vegas Aces heart, additionally nabbed an NCAA title as a member of the South Carolina Gamecocks. She was chosen first within the WNBA draft by the Aces in 2018 and has clearly lived as much as the hype. As for child names, Wilson can be a singular different to extra frequent names like William, which ranked tenth on the Social Safety Administration’s 2023 checklist (Wilson was all the best way down at No. 670).

This one honors one other first-round draft decide turned Las Vegas Ace star, Jackie Younger. The previous Notre Dame star and 2019 No. 1 choice nabbed a gold medal within the 5×5 even on the 2024 Olympics. The title is gender-neutral. Nevertheless, in Younger’s case, it’s quick for Jacquelyn, a model of the previous French title Jacques which means “supplanter.”

Thought-about probably the greatest ever to do it, Sue Chicken gained 4 WNBA titles with the Seattle Storm, the place she spent her complete WNBA profession. She additionally led UConn to a pair of NCAA titles and gained 5 Olympic golds. This nickname-y different to the legend’s final title means, not surprisingly, “hen.”

Chicken’s Olympic and UConn teammate and sometimes-broadcasting accomplice Diana Taurasi additionally makes a robust case for GOAT with six Olympic medals, three NCAA crowns, and three WNBA titles. She can be the league’s all-time main scorer. The title broke the top 100 within the U.S. within the Nineteen Eighties following Princess Diana’s marriage ceremony to Prince Charles and was the 228th hottest women’ title in 2023.

A low-key technique to honor the Denver Nuggets champion Nikola Jokic, who was as soon as a second (sure second) spherical draft decide in 2014. His nickname could also be “The Joker,” however the translation for the Serbian native’s title is extra becoming: “victor of the individuals.” The gender-neutral Niko or extra female Nicole each carry the identical which means.

Go old fashioned by selecting a reputation that honors one of many early greats in ladies’s basketball, Cheryl Miller. A two-time NCAA champion, Miller was a star in highschool, setting California highschool state data for single-season (1,156, and profession (3,405) factors. She additionally gained two NCAA championships and has since produced a standout broadcasting profession. Bonus: It nods to a different WNBA icon, Sheryl Swoopes. The title is French and means “beloved” or “darling.”

We don’t have to clarify this one, can we? His Airness would in all probability take it personally.

Another technique to spell Jason, this title is ideal for Celtics followers who’re nonetheless glowing from Jayson Tatum’s function in main one of many league’s most embellished franchises to a different title in 2024. Jason means “healer” in Greek, and Tatum was definitely a “healer” for Celts followers smarting from a 16-year drought between rings.

Your baby can share a traditional title with star Kevin Durant, a two-time NBA champion and five-time Olympic gold medalist. Whereas the title is frequent, it isn’t precisely as standard as Noah. It got here in at No. 186 on the Social Safety Administration’s checklist for 2023, so it is “distinctive” with out prompting double takes. The Irish title has candy meanings you would possibly already know will ring true in your little one: “good-looking” or “beloved start.”

This one is a candy twist on Luke that’s barely much less standard (Luke was No. 31 in 2023, and Luka clocked in at No. 95). From a basketball perspective, it’s impressed by Luka Doncic, the Mavericks guard and probably the greatest modern gamers. Doncic holds the nickname “Luka Magic,” and this gender-neutral moniker can be quick for just a little woman named “Luciana.”

This one is impressed by Jerry West, the previous Laker participant and govt who impressed the NBA emblem (therefore his nickname, “The Emblem”). West died in 2024, however his legacy lives on as he helped form the league as we all know it. The title can work for infants of any gender.