Good and Bad Team Names

[sir clinksalot]

Taking a page from mouseinphilly's thread about sports logos, well, there are also some pretty bad sports names out there.

Good Football:
49ers - One of the few teams whose name is representative of their geographical location.
Patriots - Again, representative of their location
Some of the "Animal" teams are cool (Panthers, Bears, Bengals, Broncos, Ravens, Colts, Jaguars, Lions, Falcons, Rams, Eagles)
Titans - Just sounds cool

Bad Football:
Raiders and Buccaneer's - Your mascot's are both pirates. One of you call yourselves the Pirates already.
Browns - Huh?
Seahawks - What's so scary about a Seahawk (same could apply for the Cardinals and Dolphins)
Jets - Why is this a good name for a football team?
Chargers - Sounds like a battery commercial
Texans - Your in Texas. Okay, we get it. I mean, it's like "Now taking the field, YOUR LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIAN'S". Stupid.
Bills - Uh, your Buffalo, NY. To my Knowledge "Buffalo Bill" wasn't from there.
Packers - Okay, so you make cheese. I'm eskeered.


Good Baseball:
Rockies - Cool colors and again, Geographically okay.
Angels
Astros
Brewers - It's beer based, it's gotta be good.
Pirates - Truth in advertising. We are the PIRATES (see Raiders/Bucaneers)
The good animals (Tigers, Devil Rays, Diamonbacks, Blue Jays (hey, they can be mean) )

Bad Baseball:
Dodgers - I love ya Dodgers, but what is it? I always think of "Draft Dodger"
Again, the wussy animals (Cardinals, Orioles)
Mets - Okay, your metropolitan, whatever.
Expos - No longer playing, but ... huh?
Cubs - A baby bear. Awww, how cute.
Reds - What?
Red/White Sox - Okay, so you have socks with colors on them. I'm shaking in my boots (with white socks on). And it's spelled S-O-C-K-S!!!
Phillies/Twins/Nationals/- (See Texans)
Padres - Why not just the priests?
Atheletics - Uh ... what?

Good Basketball:
Good Animals (Raptors, Grizzlies, Bulls, Bucks, Hawks, Bobcats, Hornets, Timberwolves)
Warriors
Wizards

(geeze, there are ALOT of bad Basketball names)

Bad Basketball:
Lakers - It didn't make sense in Minnesota, makes even less in LA
Clippers - Hey run away, I'm a boat.
Jazz - Uhm, your not in New Orleans anymore, I bet you can count on 2 hands how many people in Utah like Jazz (the music)
Celtics - Uhm, if it was Dublin it would make more sense
Knicks - What's a Knickerbocker?
Nets - Yes, get it in the net
Cavaliers - Should have changed your name after Chevy made a crappy car with the same one
Pistons - yes, cars have them
Pacers - yes, car races have a pace car
Heat - yes, it's hot in Miami
Magic - yes, there is Magic in Orlando
Rockets - you do realize the rockets don't actually take off from Houston right?
Suns - There is Sunshine in Phoenix? who knew
Blazers - FIRE!!!
SuperSonics - Isn't that the name of a song?

Good Hockey:
Kings
Devils
Cool Animal - Penguins (because Penguins are cool and not wussy animals) , Sabres, Coyotes, Sharks)
Predators
The "Natural Disaster" teams - Lightning, Hurricanes, Avalanche

Bad Hockey:
Ducks (I'm shaking in my boots, that duck is gonna get me),
Islanders, Canadiens, Capitals (see Texans)
Canucks - What the Puck is it?
Maple Leafs - Oh Uh, watch out for the leaf falling on your head


So what are your least favorite sport team names?

[barfownz]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Browns - Huh?

Agreed.

[Maverick]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

RED SOX

[Olympicnut]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

The Scottsdale Community College Artichokes. "Look out or we'll make a dip out of ourselves with spinach!"

LA Galaxy. Soccer/futbol = a spiraling cluster of stars and planets and such.



Fun thread!!

[mouseinphilly]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Er, clink, the discussion was of uniforms, but not logos.

Back on subject, the Philadelphia 76ers is a good name for an basketball team, because of the connections to Philadelphia as the place where the American Revolution started, the Eagles were actually named after the National Recovery Act whose logo was an Eagle.

The Green Bay Packers were actually named for the Acme Packing Company in Green Bay, who just happened to be the team's uniform sponsors, and the name has stuck.

[Barbaraann]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

I cringe everytime they call the Chicago Cubs the Cubbies.

[Olympicnut]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Check out the WNBA team names. It's chock full of stupid names.

Chicago Sky (because it's, blue??)
Connecticut Sun (because sunshine is the first thing I think about when I hear Connecticut)

The list goes on.

[Radiobarry]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Taking a page from mouseinphilly's thread about sports logos, well, there are also some pretty bad sports names out there.

Good Football:
49ers - One of the few teams whose name is representative of their geographical location.
Patriots - Again, representative of their location
Some of the "Animal" teams are cool (Panthers, Bears, Bengals, Broncos, Ravens, Colts, Jaguars, Lions, Falcons, Rams, Eagles)
Titans - Just sounds cool

Bad Football:
Raiders and Buccaneer's - Your mascot's are both pirates. One of you call yourselves the Pirates already.
Browns - Huh?
Seahawks - What's so scary about a Seahawk (same could apply for the Cardinals and Dolphins)
Jets - Why is this a good name for a football team?
Chargers - Sounds like a battery commercial
Texans - Your in Texas. Okay, we get it. I mean, it's like "Now taking the field, YOUR LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIAN'S". Stupid.
Bills - Uh, your Buffalo, NY. To my Knowledge "Buffalo Bill" wasn't from there.
Packers - Okay, so you make cheese. I'm eskeered.


Good Baseball:
Rockies - Cool colors and again, Geographically okay.
Angels
Astros
Brewers - It's beer based, it's gotta be good.
Pirates - Truth in advertising. We are the PIRATES (see Raiders/Bucaneers)
The good animals (Tigers, Devil Rays, Diamonbacks, Blue Jays (hey, they can be mean) )

Bad Baseball:
Dodgers - I love ya Dodgers, but what is it? I always think of "Draft Dodger"
Again, the wussy animals (Cardinals, Orioles)
Mets - Okay, your metropolitan, whatever.
Expos - No longer playing, but ... huh?
Cubs - A baby bear. Awww, how cute.
Reds - What?
Red/White Sox - Okay, so you have socks with colors on them. I'm shaking in my boots (with white socks on). And it's spelled S-O-C-K-S!!!
Phillies/Twins/Nationals/- (See Texans)
Padres - Why not just the priests?
Atheletics - Uh ... what?

Good Basketball:
Good Animals (Raptors, Grizzlies, Bulls, Bucks, Hawks, Bobcats, Hornets, Timberwolves)
Warriors
Wizards

(geeze, there are ALOT of bad Basketball names)

Bad Basketball:
Lakers - It didn't make sense in Minnesota, makes even less in LA
Clippers - Hey run away, I'm a boat.
Jazz - Uhm, your not in New Orleans anymore, I bet you can count on 2 hands how many people in Utah like Jazz (the music)
Celtics - Uhm, if it was Dublin it would make more sense
Knicks - What's a Knickerbocker?
Nets - Yes, get it in the net
Cavaliers - Should have changed your name after Chevy made a crappy car with the same one
Pistons - yes, cars have them
Pacers - yes, car races have a pace car
Heat - yes, it's hot in Miami
Magic - yes, there is Magic in Orlando
Rockets - you do realize the rockets don't actually take off from Houston right?
Suns - There is Sunshine in Phoenix? who knew
Blazers - FIRE!!!
SuperSonics - Isn't that the name of a song?

Good Hockey:
Kings
Devils
Cool Animal - Penguins (because Penguins are cool and not wussy animals) , Sabres, Coyotes, Sharks)
Predators
The "Natural Disaster" teams - Lightning, Hurricanes, Avalanche

Bad Hockey:
Ducks (I'm shaking in my boots, that duck is gonna get me),
Islanders, Canadiens, Capitals (see Texans)
Canucks - What the Puck is it?
Maple Leafs - Oh Uh, watch out for the leaf falling on your head


So what are your least favorite sport team names?

Great job, Sir Clinks...a very thorough listing.

From the top -

Were the 49ers (gold rushers of 1849) thought to be especially athletic (or scary?) maybe so...

I'm not sure what a Titan is in Tennessee's case. At Cal State Fullerton, for example, it's Titus the elephant. And the Oakland Athletics mascot is also an elephant.

Once and for all is a Jacksonville NFL player a jag-WAHR or a jag-WIRE?

I'm sure you know that the Cleveland Browns, at least the original Browns (now the Ravens), were named after their founder, Paul Brown. I know, it still doesn't make for such a great name this side of the dawg pound.

The nickname of Houston's old team, the Oilers, made more sense. They left for Tennessee to become one of those Titan things.

And even though they are my favorite team, I know that the Angels are no "angels". It refers to the city where they originated (and, like the Padres, and old team in the Pacific Coast League). If Michael Eisner had his way, they might now be called "the Mighty Avenging Angels of Anaheim" - something I'd like even less than the current full name.

Hockey...the Los Angeles Kings (sadly that's my NHL team) strike fear in the hearts of no one on or off the ice.

A "Canuck" is a small and apparently vicious dog-like animal that is native to British Columbia. (I had done some research on this, wondering why they'd name a team after what also is an insulting slang term north of the border.)

Of course, there's always the Fightin' Banana Slugs of U-C Santa Cruz.

Good thread!

[BFJen]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

I gotta go with the dolphins - I love the team, but a dolphin playing football???

Also, just for the record - Utah has a couple of really good jazz festivals!!! (But yes, teams that move and are geographically named - probably need to change something)

[Radiobarry]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Basketball - good point about the Cavaliers, Gregg.

But what about the Pacers? Shouldn't they have changed after that wonderful AMC car was introduced?

Give me the "Pintos" or the "Vega"s or the "Citations" any day!!!

[barfownz]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Padres - Why not just the priests?

San Diego is fairly close to Mexico. I fully understand why they are called the Padres.

[mouseinphilly]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

The Padres were named for the Missions that are around the San Diego area, and also the fact that a couple of teams are named after old minor league baseball teams - the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers and the Florida (Miami) Marlins - as well as the other reason the Padres were named, for the Franciscian monks that "Keep the faith".

[Radiobarry]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

The Padres were named for the Missions that are around the San Diego area, and also the fact that a couple of teams are named after old minor league baseball teams - the Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers and the Florida (Miami) Marlins - as well as the other reason the Padres were named, for the Franciscian monks that "Keep the faith".

I think the original point is that the nickname of a team should somehow strike fear into the heart of the opposition, or at least sound cool, and Padres, like Angels, might not exactly measure up.

Note - while there originally was a minor league Milwaukee Brewers, the curret major league franchise started out as the American League Seattle Pilots, without whom we might never have had Jim Bouton's classic "Ball Four".

[stinkerbell]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

College: Cocks, Beavers, Anteaters and Ducks. Ooooh, scary!! And two of those are a little bit dirrrty.

[Olympicnut]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Look out!! Here comes the Santa Rosa Franciscan Monks! :lol:

[Radiobarry]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

Check out the WNBA team names. It's chock full of stupid names.

Chicago Sky (because it's, blue??)
Connecticut Sun (because sunshine is the first thing I think about when I hear Connecticut)

The list goes on.

Aah, for the days of the old World Football League.

(Seven-point touchdowns followed up by the "action point") ...

I went to the "Southern California Suns" home opener at the Big A in July 1974...they beat the "Hawaiians" 38-33.

Other original teams...

Memphis Southmen
Jacksonville Sharks
New York Stars
Philadelphia Bell
Portland Storm
Portland Thunder
San Antonio Wings
Shreveport Steamer
Toronto Northmen
Virginia Ambassadors
Washington-Baltimore Ambassadors

Any wonder the league went under the next year?

[mouseinphilly]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

I'll see that and raise you the North American Soccer League...

Dallas Tornado, Philadelphia Fury, the Caribou of Colorado, the L. A. Aztecs, the San Diego Sockers, the Chicago Sting...

I could go on.

[steamboatpete]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

My least favorite sport team names:

NFL: Browns. Makes more sense than, say, the St. Louis Frontieres, but only slightly.

MLB: A's. A name that makes you want to kick them.

NBA: Jazz. I tend to hate names that don't end with an 's' and this is maybe the least suitable of all of them.

NHL: Canucks. Now that the Ducks are no longer Mighty.

College - Major: Stanford Cardinal. Not the Cardinals. The Cardinal.

College - Lower Division: The UC Santa Clara Banana Slugs and/or Whittier Poets.

Soccer: L.A. Galaxy.

[steamboatpete]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

College: Cocks, Beavers, Anteaters and Ducks. Ooooh, scary!! And two of those are a little bit dirrrty.

The Trojans against the 'Cocks and the Beavers always make for some punny T-shirts. Best ever: "Your Trojans can't cover our Cocks." Worst? "Go Trojans. Split the Beavers."

[DisneyIPresume]

Re: Good and Bad Team Names

The Angels started out as the Los Angeles Angels and changed their name to the California Angels after they moved to Anaheim. As much as I hate it, the Los Angeles Angels makes sense because Los Angeles is the Spanish word for Angels.