The Best Basketball Team Name Ideas

From three on three teams to fantasy ball, intramural sports, and pick-up leagues just for fun, if you have a basketball team, you need a name. To answer the eternal question, “ What should we call ourselves?” we’ve assembled some of the best team names out there. Even if you don’t find a name you love here, you’re sure to find something that inspires your own take on things.

We’ve set things up in categories, but feel free to look through them all: you never know when one might jump out at you.

Tips for Choosing a Good Basketball Team Name

Before we get to all the great choices you have, how do you pick something out of all the team names out there? Well, there are some steps you can take that will help you choose faster and better.

• Know your league: what kind of league are you in, and are there rules about the name you can choose? For example, your church pick-up league may have guidelines to keep team names “family-friendly,” while your local three-on-three tourney might be more lenient.
• Know your identity: what is the relationship between the players on your team? Do you all work together? Have you been friends for years? Are you all tall, quick, short, or a mix of all of the above? These unique features can help you choose a great team name.
• Keep it brief: when it comes to printing your team name on custom t-shirts and custom sportswear (team clappers or even can coolers, anyone?), you don’t want something too long that runs off the edge or looks crowded. If you look good, you play better, right?

Your name is an opportunity to “play on words,” so don’t miss out. Also, have a couple of names picked out, like a top three. If another team “steals” your name, you’ll be ready with a backup that can come off the bench and save the day.

Here are a rack-load of great basketball names to choose from perfect for printing on your custom jerseys. Bounce a few ideas around, take a shot at how they sound to everyone on your team, and most of all, have fun!

Funny Team Names

Put the fun back in the fundamentals with this list of basketball team names.

1. Net Rippers
2. Basket Hounds
3. D-Fence
4. Upcourt Funk Me Up
5. Spare Balls
6. Balls to the Wall
7. The Ball Boyz
8. Travelers
9. Jazz Me Up
10. Droolers and Dribblers
11. Shattered Backboards
12. Dunkin’ Dads
13. Lay Up Lay Down
14. Tipped Off
15. Slammed Dunk
16. Ball Hogz
17. Nose Pick and Roll
18. On Da Rebound
19. Net Positive
20. Pointing Guards
21. Unpowered Forwards
22. Dirt Cheap Deeds
23. Fowl Outs
24. Bench Buddies
25. The Three Amigos
26. The Dudes
27. Alley Oops
28. No Hops
29. Jump Balls
30. Hair Jordan
31. Bull Shotz
32. Fast Brakes
33. Swish Kebabs
34. Netty Shots
35. Sneaker Squeakers
36. Netty Shots
37. Russian Hackers
38. Scorgasm Masters
39. Gang Green
40. Bricklayers

Of course, there are a lot more funny names out there. Shoot us some of yours, and we may just add them to our list.

Nerdy Basketball Team Names

Gamers got game too, right? So do Star Trek and Star Wars fans, Harry Potter followers, and nerds of all sorts. Bring your nerd word into your basketball team name with these ideas:

1. Jedi Ballers
2. Beam Us Up
3. The Red Shirts
4. Deathstars
5. Slytherin (or your house of choice)
6. The Lannisters
7. Predators
8. Doctors, Not Magicians
9. Storm Troopers
10. Guardians of the Galaxy
11. Dragon Trainers
12. Wizards
13. Hobbits
14. Sorcerers
15. Darth Invaders
16. Thai Fighters
17. The Imperials
18. A New Hoop
19. The Droids
20. Knights of the Round Table
21. Android Dreams
22. Mad Max
23. Hungry Gamers
24. Trekkies
25. The Wookies
26. We Are Groot
27. The Ewoks
28. Dungeon Masters
29. Check Mates
30. Kings
31. Game of Throws
32. Geeks in Sneaks
33. Freak Throws
34. Three Basketeers
35. Net Flix Bingers

Ready to get your inner nerd on the court? Use these names, or come up with creative ones of your own.

Names for your Girls’ Basketball Team

Girls have a special place on the basketball court, and as such, their teams deserve epic and really cool names that will put their male counterparts to shame. When it comes to creative names for the ladies, there are a lot of options.

Here are a few of the best ones:

1. All the Single Ladies
2. A Teague of Our Own
3. Court Queens
4. Baller Angels
5. On the Rebound
6. Her-icanes
7. Mean Girls
8. Lethal Ladies
9. RIP Girls
10. Dunkin’ Dames
11. Chicka Wow Wows
12. Fancy-Free Shots
13. Backcourt Babes
14. Cherry Bombers
15. Athenas
16. Dazzling Dunkers
17. Razzle Dazzle
18. Ringers
19. Winning Wives
20. Rockettes
21. Basket Bees
22. Cougars
23. G.I. Janes
24. Killer Barbies
25. Lilac Avengers
26. Slick Chicks
27. Jane Does
28. The Minxs
29. Pony Tails
30. Wonder Women
31. Vixens
32. Wild Kittens
33. Violet Offenders
34. Red Roses
35. The Leopard Skins

We’re sure you can think of a lot more female team names, some much better than our selections. When you pick yours, let us know how it looks on your favorite basketball jersey, and of course, how you do on the court!

Basketball Team Names for the Boys

Of course, we don’t want to leave the boys out of things, and they, too, get team names of their own. From the youngest boys leagues to men’s pick-up teams or even your favorite community team, there’s sure to be a name to describe your masculine prowess.

1. Air Those Balls – Air is a necessity for balls.
2. All The King’s Men
3. Backdoor Men
4. Bad News Boys
5. Ball Boys
6. Ball Magicians
7. Ball-Stars
8. Big Ballers
9. Big Man And The Sizzle Boys
10. Boogie Knights
11. Boyz N The Hood
12. Bruisers
13. Circle Dirks
14. Dirk Digglers
15. Dobermen
16. Dukes
17. Game Corks
18. Gentlemen Ballers
19. Great Balls of Fire
20. Grizzly Balls
21. Ground Breakers
22. Hook Shot Slims
23. Hoosier Daddies
24. IJump Shot Jacks
25. Just Angry Men – And proud!
26. Lonesome Cowboys
27. Mighty Court Movers
28. Minutemen
29. Outlaws
30. Rough Boys
31. Sirs And Gentlemen
32. Sock Puppets
33. The Army Of Hulks – That’s one scary army.
34. The Bros
35. The Bulldogz

Of course, there are all kinds of other names for men’s teams, some nearly on the x-rated side. Use your imagination, and develop a new take on an old phrase--if you dare. Just know you might get booed as soon as your team is announced.

Just Cool Basketball Team Names

There are some names for basketball teams that are just cool--nothing more and nothing less. Here are some of those names you can steal or modify to make them suit your team even better.

1. 50 Shades of Play
2. 99 Problems But A Swish Ain’t One
3. And One More For Us
4. Average Joes
5. Backbenchers
6. Bartenders
7. Bed, Bath, and Baskets
8. Bigly Ballers – In reference to Donald Trump using the word ‘bigly.’
9. Bling Kings (or Queens)
10. Blurred Lines
11. Comic Sans Cavaliers
12. Fair Jordans
13. Dribbling Souls
14. Dribbling Softly
15. Ebola Ballers
16. Fighting Koalas
17. Flat Earth Trotters
18. Getting Jiggy With It
19. Human Size Players
20. I Can’t Believe It’s Not Baller
21. I Wish I Was A Baller
22. Indiana Paste Eaters
23. Juan On Juan
24. Kareem Cheese
25. Nash Potatoes
26. Pace Makers
27. Papa Cons
28. Parking Lot Pimps
29. Pigs Can Fly – Yes, yes, they can.
30. Power Grangers – Wordplay on Power Rangers and Danny Granger.
31. Rated PG-13 – No kids allowed.
32. Rebound Your Mouth Shut
33. Screw Balls
34. Shake And Fake
35. The Seven Dwarfs
36. Snow Whites
37. Slam Dunk Drunk
38. Soup-A-Stars
39. Swish Kebabs
40. The Philadelphia 69ers
41. Three The Hard Way
42. Water Malone
43. White Men Can Jump
44. Whose Shot, JR?
45. Yao What I Ming?

Think of your favorite television show, movie, or even a book you can steal a line or title from, and modify to make your team name truly unique. There are other options, and one of those is simply to steal the name from a pro team that already exists.

Professional Basketball Team Names

When it comes to team names, we can’t ignore the fact that there are a ton of teams already out there, professional, college, and even from around the world. A simple solution to coming up with a team name is to simply use one of these. Here are some well-known and lesser-known team names you can use or modify.

The good news about these names? You already have logos, jerseys, and swag with the team names on them, whether you borrow from the pro shop or create your own unique branding.

Men’s NBA Team Names:

1. Boston Celtics
2. Brooklyn Nets
3. New York Knicks
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. Toronto Raptors
6. Chicago Bulls
7. Cleveland Cavaliers
8. Detroit Pistons
9. Indiana Pacers
10. Milwaukee Bucks
11. Atlanta Hawks
12. Charlotte Hornets
13. Miami Heat
14. Orlando Magic
15. Washington Wizards
16. Golden State Warriors
17. LA Clippers
18. Los Angeles Lakers
19. Phoenix Suns
20. Sacramento Kings
21. Dallas Mavericks
22. Houston Rockets
23. Memphis Grizzlies
24. New Orleans Pelicans
25. San Antonio Spurs
26. Denver Nuggets
27. Minnesota Timberwolves
28. Oklahoma City Thunder
29. Portland Trail Blazers
30. Utah Jazz

WNBA Team Names:

Former Team Names, Gone, but not forgotten:

1. Bay Area Shuckers
2. Brooklyn All Game
3. Brooklyn Blazers
4. Brooklyn Firebirds
5. Buffalo Stampede
6. Capital City Express
7. C. Drew All-Stars
8. C. Funkhouse Piranhas
9. Garden State Rebels
10. Gotham City Revolution
11. Hartford Lightning
12. Hudson Valley Hype
13. Hudson Valley Kingz
14. Long Island United
15. Metropolitan All-Stars
16. New Jersey Thunder
17. New York Lions
18. North Jersey Pros
19. NoVa Hawks
20. Philadelphia Destroyers
21. Toms River Shooters
22. Tri-City Suns
23. Tru Hope Trailblazers
24. Washington GreenHawks
25. Westchester Wildkatz
26. Winchester Storm

There are more pro team names from leagues around the world. Come up with a new take on one of your local teams or your favorites, and you’ll have a great basketball team name in no time. 

You’re now well on your way to coming up with a great basketball team name you can use to customize your jerseys and team gear. What did you come up with that is not on our list? Showcase your creativity and share your ideas with us!