Basketball-What’s in a name? |11 March 2005

It all started with Victoria Suns in the early 1990s and Lenny ‘Bad’ Aglaé, the former captain of the now defunct team explained to Sports Nation why they chose the name.

“Originally, we were to name the team Victoria Blazers but for some reason we chose Victoria Suns because the sun is very important in everyday life. It brings life, light and is very dominant. The dominant aspect is important for teams to consider when choosing their names. Sometimes, teams tend to copy NBA names just to frighten their opponents. You can’t have a team with the name Lakers and find out that they aren’t that good and don’t even feature in the top flight here. It’s no use then taking the name of a team like Lakers who have known success in the NBA,” explained Aglaé.

Local teams have over the years taken names like Hawks, Bullets, Heat, Jazz, Kings, Rockets and more recently Blazers. All these names come from successful NBA teams like Atlanta Hawks, Washington Bullets now Washington Wizards, Miami Heat, Utah Jazz, Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers.

Of the many teams with NBA-style names, only Victoria Suns and PLS Hawks have enjoyed success.

Well-known PLS Hawks, formerly known as Plaisance Red Machine, Plaisance and PLS before opting for their current name with the re-introduction of clubs here in 1993, explained through coach Tony Juliette that the choice for the Hawks name came about when they were choosing their motto.

“Our motto is ‘Aiming high’ and we immediately thought of a bird that flies high in the sky. Hawks was the best name we came up with. We are also in contact with the Atlanta Hawks team of the NBA and we wrote to them asking for permission to use the name Hawks. They had no objection,” said Juliette, whose team have won almost everything single piece of silverware on offer being the top flight league championship, the SBF Cup, the Curtain-raiser, the Independence Cup and the Charity match.

The most recent team to sport an NBA name is Bel Air Blazers. According to the team’s coach Jimmy Elizabeth, a former playmaker with Bel Air and MBU Rockers, the name Bel Air Blazers existed in the early 1990s.

“Then the team’s name changed to Baya who now play in the Men division 1A League. Bel Air’s second team – Bel Air Youth – wanted to change their name and I proposed Bel Air Blazers and I got everyone’s approval,” explained Elizabeth, whose team are to play in the Men division two this season.

Two of the three other teams with NBA names - Beau Vallon Heat and Cascade Bullets – play in the country’s Men division 1A League, while a third - LMS Jazz – have been relegated to the Men division 1B League after just one season among the elites.
It is worth noting that RA Rockets and Bel Ombre Kingz are now defunct.

G. G.