Why Do the knicks hide their real name?

[drewd]

I don't get why the knicks try to hide their real name, I never got that? They always use Knicks instead of Knickerbockers... I know other teams use nicknames like the Mavs for the Mavericks, the Cavs for the Cavaliers, but they all use the full names on the jerseys and in the media. But its also funny the knicks are named after pants,

[Papa Midnite]

Because the Knickerbockers is entirely too long for the modern day vernacular; it's 4 f*cking syllables.

The same thing goes for the "Super Sonics".

[TheBluest]

I don't get why the knicks try to hide their real name, I never got that? They always use Knicks instead of Knickerbockers ... I know other teams use nicknames like the Mavs for the Mavericks, the Cavs for the Cavaliers, but they all use the full names on the jerseys and in the media. But its also funny the knicks are named after pants,

[VinnyTheMick]

I don't get why the knicks try to hide their real name, I never got that? They always use Knicks instead of Knickerbockers... I know other teams use nicknames like the Mavs for the Mavericks, the Cavs for the Cavaliers, but they all use the full names on the jerseys and in the media. But its also funny the knicks are named after pants,

because you touch yourself at night.

[movingon]

I don't get why the knicks try to hide their real name, I never got that? They always use Knicks instead of Knickerbockers... I know other teams use nicknames like the Mavs for the Mavericks, the Cavs for the Cavaliers, but they all use the full names on the jerseys and in the media. But its also funny the knicks are named after pants,

because you touch yourself at night.

I love this board.

[Eric12]

WHy not just call them the New York Pants? Yeah, Knicks is fine.

[Luv those Knicks]

It's an old reference to New York City which doesn't really apply anymore. Boston is still thought of as "Irish" but nobody thinks of NYC as Dutch.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knickerbocker

Knickerbocker is a Dutch surname and a type of clothing. It is a name often cited in reference to New York City, referred to the oldest New Yorker families, for the most part of Dutch origins, an allusion to the fictional character "Father Knickerbocker" who, according to the tale told by Washington Irving, was the head of the first socially prominent family in New York. According to Ric Burns' New York: A Documentary Film, generations of New Yorkers proudly claimed to be descendants of Father Knickerbocker, despite his fictional roots.

Uses of the name Knickerbocker include:


Bill Knickerbocker (1911 – 1963), American baseball shortstop
Harmen Jansen Knickerbocker or Harman Jansen Van Wijhe (c1648 – c1720), a Dutch colonist of New Netherland and great-great-grandfather of Federalist Congressman Herman Knickerbocker
Herman Knickerbocker (1779 – 1855), a United States Representative from New York who served in the eleventh Congress
Sons (or daughters) of Knickerbocker, a nickname for students and alumni of Columbia University in the City of New York

and check this out:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Knickerbockers

The New York Knickerbockers were one of the first organized baseball teams which played under a set of rules similar to the game today. The team was founded by Alexander Cartwright, considered one of the original developers of modern baseball.

In 1849, the New York Knickerbockers wore the first ever recorded baseball uniform.[1]

The Knicks weren't named after pants - a common misconception. The pants and the knicks were named after the Knickerbocker family and the association with New York City that the family had.




I think it's safe to say that the Knicks no longer associate themselves with the "Knickerbocker" name - so it's no longer an abreviation, it's their new brand. The cavs are still the cavaliers. The mavs are still the mavericks, but the Sonics are no longer super and the knicks are no longer bockers. (Wait, the Sonics are no longer the sonics, they're theifs, I mean, the thunder) - but when basketball returns to seattle, they will probably just say sonics on their uniform. No more super.

at least, that's how I see it.

And lets not bring up the Cincinnati Red Stockings. (Men aren't supposed to wear stockings)




Oh, and, I can't resist but posting this ugly but very true bit of history:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id ... sPrint=off

The 1978-79 New York Knicks were publicly referred to as the "****," and the NBA was widely regarded as an "outlaw" league.

- and, that wasn't a blog (there were't blogs in 1979), it was a reporter for one of the major newspapers. The Knicks were the first team to have an entirely black roster and one reporter felt it was OK to call them - well, "****", I think it was the post or daily news, and I think the name is offensive, but I was alive when it happened and I remember the article.

Maybe somebody could find the article who's more google skilled than me.

[knicksNOTslick]

Knickerbockers are not just pants. They're party pants. And you are all invited to watch the New York Pants Party at MSG.

[VinnyTheMick]

Knickerbockers are not just pants. They're party pants. And you are all invited to watch the New York Pants Party at MSG.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYctj2AVK3Q

[richardhutnik]

Hey, why didn't they shorten it to Bockers, the way the Supersonics got shortened to Sonics? Then it could be shorten again to Bokers. After that, they Bokers could get changed again to Reebokers, the way the Red Bulls are set up, and Dolan be able to make more money off this.

And how about we whine about the Washington team getting changed to the Wizards instead of the Bullets?

- Rich