EARVIN « MAGIC » JOHNSON
“My Favorite Nickname” for Adrien “Chewy” Pommepuy, illustrator. “Who is still talking about Earvin Johnson? Magic erased his first name and even his last name. » Given by a journalist in high school, the nickname “Magic” then put a little pressure on the future star of the Lakers, who did not adopt it right away. “And his mother, very religious, considered this nickname evoking magic a little inappropriate for a good Christian”, recalls Vincent “Baby TER” Reculeau, author of the texts.
DARRYL « CHOCOLATE THUNDER » DAWKINS
“It was Stevie Wonder, who went to Sixers meetings in Philadelphia in the 1970s, who was told about the game by a friend. His imagination and his poetry did the rest and he nicknamed “Éclair de chocolat” this basket smasher who gave nicknames to his dunks, such as “The Go-Rilla”, “The Rim Wrecker”, “The In Your Face Disgrace”. »
LARRY « THE HIGH AYATOLLA OF SLAMOLA » NANCE
Among the most intriguing in the book. Vincent Reculeau: “Nance won the first dunk contest, in 1984. The Suns launched a contest to find a nickname for him. “Flash Nance” was discarded, along with “Slambassador”. He kept this one, long and funny. » For the illustrator, “The negative resonance of ‘ayatolla’ also evokes ‘AK47’, Andrei Kirilenko’s nickname, for his initials and for his hometown (Izhevsk), where the Kalashnikov is made. »
Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon. (Adrien Pommepuy/“NBA All Star Names”/Amphora Publishing)
HAKEEM « THE DREAM » OLAJUWON
“I love nicknames that rhymeexplains Vincent Reculeau, like Clyde The Glide (Drexler). But “The Dream”, a nickname received from university, it is not at all free, it was really a dream to watch him play. And with Houston, he took advantage of Michael Jordan’s first retirement in 1993 and won two titles (1994 and 1995). »
NIKOLA « JOKER » JOKIC
“A nickname that sticks to the game of the Serb from Denver, explains the author: atypical, like the joker in a card game. »“There is also this side that does not take itself seriously, for the designer. It was given to him by a teammate, Mike Miller, who couldn’t pronounce “Jokic”. This is what happens to many Europeans like the Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo, nicknamed “The Greek Freak”. »
“NBA All Star Names” by Vincent Reculeau, illustrations by Adrien Pommepuy, Amphora editions, preface by Thomas Pesquet, €29.95.