Who has the best name in the NBA? -Deseret News

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When the Denver Nuggets were in town to play the Utah Jazz earlier this week, head coach Michael Malone was asked about facing such a young group.

“One thing you have to understand,” Malone said. “When guys who haven't had a chance to play most of the year get a chance, they play like there's no tomorrow. So for Taylor Hendricks, for Brice Sensabaugh, for Johnny Juzang, who I vote as the best name in the NBA, these guys are making the most of this opportunity.”

OK, the stuff about young people playing hungry is great. But I wanted to know more about Malone's top name rankings and asked if there were any others. He laughed and said I was embarrassing him and he needed to get back to me, but doubled down because Juzang's name stood out.

“Johnny, he’s so far ahead of the group,” Malone said. “Wouldn’t you agree? Johnny Juzang must be up there.”

Great question, Michael – and also another interesting piece of the puzzle, namely Malone's interest and no-nonsense love of names.

I've always loved the name Thabo Sefolosha, it just feels good to say it. But who has the best name among active NBA players? I asked other reporters and some of the jazz musicians, and here's what I found. A short list that is in no way definitive, ranked or even definitive – just a small selection of favorites.

First, Bam Adebayo from Miami. Bam is an objectively cool name in itself. But during the discussion of names, Jazz two-way player Micah Potter informed me that Bam is not his real first name, but that it is actually Edrice. What?! Bam is cool and Edrice Adebayo sounds so majestic. Either way, it's a winning name.

Some of the Jazz rookies said that even if LeBron James wasn't who he is (one of the greatest players of all time), he would have a cool name. I disagree, but OK.

The Portland Trail Blazers may have a terrible record, but when it comes to names, they're insanely rich – Scoot Henderson (whose real first name is Sterling), Toumani Camara, Duop Reath, Rayan Rupert, Matisse Thybulle, Shaedon Sharpe. Honestly, these are all incredible candidates.

Other favorites include Bones Hyland (real name Nah'Shon) of the Clippers, Kevin Love and Tyler Herro of Miami, Leaky Black (real name Rechon Malik) of Charlotte and Ja Morant of Memphis.

What is your favorite NBA name?

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Quote of the week

“Relief. I wish I could say it was joyful, but you guys interact with me a lot, I don't seem very joyful at the moment. I feel like I'm definitely relieved, and tonight was on the court “Probably a lot of stress left out.” — Jazz coach Will Hardy after the team defeated the Rockets, ending a 13-game losing streak

From the archives

Extra points

• Jazz newbie Taylor Hendricks makes progress and finds his voice (Deseret News)
• After Nuggets loss, a snapshot of what the Jazz are trying to fix (Deseret News)
• Rockets guard Jalen Green's late breakout has Jazz preaching patience to their own young players (KSL.com)

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