Lowell, I agree with you on the Warriors and Golden State being a somewhat dumb name. But there is some logic to it along with Giants and Jets. The thing that's strange with sports teams names, is that once a team has it's name, for some reason it's almost impossible to be changed. Probably has to do with merchandising or just the basic identity of the team. Examples of this are the one's you mentioned, the Jets and Giants who were in New York when they originated. The Angles when they were originated I believe were called the Los Angeles Angels. The Warriors I believe when they first moved here, played in S.F. and were called the San Francisco Warriors. The rivalry between the cities of Oakland and S.F. is probably why they weren't called Oakland Warriors.

But to me, the DUMBEST team name of all..........is the Utah JAZZ. That team moved from New Orleans and brought the name Jazz with it. Why they couldn't shake the name Jazz in Utah, which is one of the least "hip" states in the U.S. is a mystery. Also Lakers in L.A., who came from Minnasota where there ARE lakes, is another dumb name that will never make sense or be changed. And another name that should be changed for obvious reasons that hasn't yet is Redskins.

Lowell, glad your still doing your thing with the sports writing. I go back to the 70's when I began reading the chronicle sporting green and remember you from back then. Sports reporting was great back then because it was just about sports, as opposed to today when it seems to be more about all the money athletes make and their personal lives..........

Chris in Berkeley

Chris, thanks for your reply and thanks for reading my blog. I agree the Jazz is a head scratcher. On the theme of misplaced geographical names like Lakers, the Dodgers, as I recall, referred to Trolley Dodgers in Brooklyn. No trollies in Chavez Ravine to dodge.

Lowell

Shame on the Warriors PR staff for posting on a blog site in order to influence public opinion about the team.

Norm that was the funniest thing I read all day. Humor is great when there is a ring of truth to it, isn't it? It sure seems like the Warrior's PR staff came up with Chris' reply.

But Chris I do like the idea that the Utah Jazz has a name that should be mentioned is the "absurd names" column.

However, with that said it is about money. It's risky to go with a smaller market city name because people identify with certain markets for some reason. It's beyond me how a guy raised here all his life ends up rooting for "America's Team" puts on a Cowboy's shirt..but they do! That bonding puts a lot of money in Jerry Jone's pocket.

This is an interesting topic. We have probably just scratched the surface.
How about those Washington Bullets ??
When I was a kid it was the California Angels. Maybe the Angels have some type of identity crisis. Somebody needs to go back and list out all of their known indentities.
Political correctness also enters into the eqaution.
What ever happened to the Stanford Indians ??
If you take the logic used about the Dodgers, than San Francisco should not have the Giants. Think about the die hard New York fan from that era. Their football team plays in New York, and their baseball team moved out west.
Back to our beloved Warriors...I am thinking it had something to do with them staying in the Bay Area, and they did not want to alienate the local fan base at the time, by choosing one town over another.
Maybe the most confusing deals were the ones that involved the Cleveland Browns situation, or better yet the Baltimore Colts / Indianapolis Colts deal. The Colts may be the worst with respects to team history. Johnny Unitas was the most upset about that deal.

The one that always makes me grit my teeth is the Houston Texans. Where's the creativity? Why not just bring back the Oilers? Heck, the Mosquitoes would've been better. The Washington Nationals is on that same list of creatively void names too.

yeah it's just baffling why teams when they move, don't pick a new name for their new city and fans. The one in recent history that got it right were the Baltimore Ravens from Cleveland. And that was only because of legal issues with the Cleveland Brown name, a very rare occurance.

Here's one out of left field regarding team names. When Al Davis checks out of this world, myself being a longtime passionate Raider fan, would like to see the Raider name, logo and uniforms retired, never to be used again, and have the Oakland NFL franchise given a new name.........Al Davis is the Raiders, and it just seems unimaginable to have, the unique good......and bad.........aura that he brings to that team ever existing without Al.

Maybe not dumb, although racism is dumb, but I wonder how Redskins can continue as a team name. Isn't there a Native American tribe or word that they could use? How about something like Braves or Warriors? And Washington could choose something not related to Native Americans.

But Redskin, man, that is terrible. In a country with such a history of racism and genocide against the American Indian you'd think that the Nation's Capitol would want something better for its football team's name.

whats even funnier about the Giants/Jets is that their team headqurters are in New Jersey. So not only do they play in New Jersey, they are based in New Jersey and have no tie to New York what so ever.

The 'Golden State' moniker is not only stupid, but IMO a slap in the face to the city that the team plays and practices in and the fan base that maintains solid attendance.

Another one I can't stand is the Charlotte Bobcats...(1) a bobcat, although an animal I wouldn't like to run into during a hike in the woods, doesn't exactly instill a sense of force or power when the word comes out of the mouth, and (2), it is my understanding that the name was chosen simply because of the team owner's name: Robert 'Bob' Johnson...

That's pretty weak and narcissistic IMVHO.

There was a team called the Dallas Texans in the NFL (1952) and then in the AFL (1960-62). The AFL Dallas Texans were started by none other than Lamar Hunt and are now the Kansas City Chiefs.