Rankings the best NBA nicknames of all time

7. The Admiral

Sometimes, a nickname’s accuracy is better left to bar debates. Lifelong San Antonio Spur, 1995 MVP, two-time NBA champion and Basketball Hall of Famer David Robinson was, of course, also in the Navy and garnered two consensus All-American nods while at the Naval Academy. He was selected first overall in the 1987 NBA Draft, but San Antonio had to wait two years so that Robinson could fulfill his active-duty obligation with the Navy.

He rose through the ranks, finishing as a Lieutenant, Junior Grade, but The Lieutenant, Junior Grade does not roll off the tongue nearly as easily as The Admiral, so Robinson is the latter. David Robinson single-handedly turned around the San Antonio Spurs, making them respectable even before Gregg Popovich and Tim Duncan arrived in 1996 and 1997, respectively.

His single most legendary individual performance happened when, on the final day of the 1993-’94 regular season, The Admiral scored 71 points to secure the NBA scoring title over Shaquille O’Neal. Only Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, David Thompson and Kobe Bryant have ever scored at least 71 points in a single game, and Robinson did it with grace under duress. It was a military-grade showing, to be sure.

Robinson earned an array of individual and all-NBA honors but could not break through on a championship until the lockout-shortened 1999 season, when he and Duncan combined to upend the 8-seed New York Knicks for the franchise’s first NBA title. He retired after winning another in 2003 as one of the greatest centers of all-time.