Athletic Baby Names

For basketball fans, in honor of Magic Johnson. Or anyone who believes in magic.

Stylish way to name your son after basketball great Walt -- though Walt is sounding fresh again too.

Though you might think you were honoring baseball's Ken Griffey, most people would think you were using a term of endearment for GRIFFIN or GRIFFITH.

There are ordinary folk named Prince, Earl, and Duke, so why not this rank of nobility as well? Many spellings compete, the most common being Marquis, Marquise, and Marquez. Rapper 50 Cent chose the Marquise version for his son; David Caruso chose Marquez.

Variation of the popular religious name, boosted by megastar Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ventura started life as a shortening of Bonaventura, Spanish for good luck or good fortune, but now stands on its own. It has a pleasant sound and the stylish 'V' ending, but Angelenos would associate it with the Valley's main stem--Ventura Boulevard, and others might think of Ace or Jesse Ventura.

A common Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean unisex name, and the name of a culturally rich Chinese Dynastic period. Yao Ming is the seven and a half foot Shanghai-born basketball star. Trivia tidbit: His parents were the tallest couple in China at the time of his birth.

Last name occasionally used as a first, can be seen as a Lance Armstrong athlete-hero name.

Durant's meaning signifies staying power, a good quality to impart to your child. Notables with the surname Durant include Pulitzer Prize-winning authors Will and Ariel Durant, most famous for their eleven-volume The Story of Civilization, and William Crappo Durant, co-founder of General Motors and Chevrolet.

Despite the presidential pedigree, it's still hard to shake the image of the cartoon cat (named after his creator Jim Davis's grandfather). However, there are other Garfields, such as Barbadian cricket player Sir Garfield Sobers, who carries it with gravitas.

Football fans just might want to honor star footballer Ahman Green, whose name can be seen as a variation of AHMED or AHMAD.

Skater Tai Babilonia brought this sleek modern name to the world's attention. Pronounced "tie."

Gehrig might have been used as a sports hero name honoring legendary baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, but the association with the disease he gave his name to makes it a no-no.

A short form that could be used independently, a la the singer Joss Stone.

The last name of one of the great modern American tennis champs could conceivably be used as a hero name by tennis-loving parents. On second thought, maybe save it for a middle spot.

Though you might have been a fan of tennis star Chris Evert, stick with EVERETT, which everyone will think you're saying anyway.

Found as a first name primarily in baseball books giving the stats on the late New York Yankee Thurman Munson.

Classic Indian name with a winning meaning — literally.

A variation made famous by Australian Aboriginal tennis champ Evonne Goolagong.

A surname very rarely heard as a first, associated with Hall of Fame basketball star Patrick Ewing and, in the 1980s, the oil-rich Ewing family on the nighttime soap, "Dallas"