What are the most common first names in NBA history?
- Thread starter Smashcat
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1. John
2. Jacob
3. Jingleheimer-Schmidt
2. Jacob
3. Jingleheimer-Schmidt
A surprising amount of Dicks 
Which raises a language/culture question- when did the alternate meaning of that word overwhelm its use as a nickname? I grew up in the 80's, and by that time, anyone named Dick was going to draw giggles. Yeah, it was understood to be an alternate to Richard, and yeah, there were still some older people using it (looking at you, Mr. Vitale), but I would say it was exceedingly rare for anyone born after 1970 to willingly use it as a name. But clearly, it was pretty common before then.
So, was it the 60's that saw it transformed? I'm sure the slang use of the word was around long before that, but there must have been a time when it became so common that using it as a name mostly stopped.
Which raises a language/culture question- when did the alternate meaning of that word overwhelm its use as a nickname? I grew up in the 80's, and by that time, anyone named Dick was going to draw giggles. Yeah, it was understood to be an alternate to Richard, and yeah, there were still some older people using it (looking at you, Mr. Vitale), but I would say it was exceedingly rare for anyone born after 1970 to willingly use it as a name. But clearly, it was pretty common before then.
So, was it the 60's that saw it transformed? I'm sure the slang use of the word was around long before that, but there must have been a time when it became so common that using it as a name mostly stopped.
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The single name team.
Wilt
LeBron
Kobe
Elgin
Scottie
Hakeem
Dwayne
Drazen
Willis
Vinnie
Wilt
LeBron
Kobe
Elgin
Scottie
Hakeem
Dwayne
Drazen
Willis
Vinnie
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Uh. There have been two Kareem's. Two Shaq's. Nobody in the history NBA was named Magic. There has been only one Ervin, so that should be added.
The point is their name only occurs on the list once.
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My mistake. Thought you were just referring to players who are known by their first name alone.
A surprising amount of Dicks
Which raises a language/culture question- when did the alternate meaning of that word overwhelm its use as a nickname? I grew up in the 80's, and by that time, anyone named Dick was going to draw giggles. Yeah, it was understood to be an alternate to Richard, and yeah, there were still some older people using it (looking at you, Mr. Vitale), but I would say it was exceedingly rare for anyone born after 1970 to willingly use it as a name. But clearly, it was pretty common before then.
So, was it the 60's that saw it transformed? I'm sure the slang use of the word was around long before that, but there must have been a time when it became so common that using it as a name mostly stopped.
I can’t remember if he had a younger brother, but a “Dick” from Tilghman in the early to mid 80’s changed his name. Someone in the family was Italian and he went with their last name
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