Hardwood Houdini
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Why Terry Rozier’s Nickname is Important

By Jeremy Stevens

BOSTON - APRIL 30: Boston Celtics guard Terry Rozier (12) and Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) celebrate after Smart's three point jumper in the second quarter closed Washington's lead to within 3 points (40-37) over the Celtics. The Boston Celtics host the Washington Wizards in Game One of the NBA Eastern Conference Semi Final playoff series at TD Garden in Boston on Apr. 30, 2017. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
BOSTON - APRIL 30: Boston Celtics guard Terry Rozier (12) and Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) celebrate after Smart's three point jumper in the second quarter closed Washington's lead to within 3 points (40-37) over the Celtics. The Boston Celtics host the Washington Wizards in Game One of the NBA Eastern Conference Semi Final playoff series at TD Garden in Boston on Apr. 30, 2017. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /
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"Take this down. My name is Shaquille O’Neal, and Paul Pierce is the (colorful adjective) truth. Quote me on that, and don’t take nothing out. I knew he could play, but I didn’t know he could play like this. Paul Pierce is the truth.-Shaquille O’Neal"

In November 2004, Paul Pierce visited the Yankee Candle store in Deerfield, Massachusetts to sign autographs and sell mistletoe scented candles for his new “P2” brand. There was so much buzz about Pierce’s appearance that you wouldn’t even know the rest of the team showed up. I’m not exaggerating, people at the event did not realize the other giant men walking around also played for the Celtics. I didn’t see any of them, so little 11-year-old me walked up to a staff member to ask where they all went, just to learn they were bored of not being recognized.

“Yeah, Tony Allen said he wasn’t feeling well. Walter McCarty was here, I think he got bored. Kendrick Perkins was somewhere, too. Don’t know what happened to him…” is more or less what he told me.

I didn’t get to meet Pierce, either. The line to get an autograph snaked all around the room he was in, out the door, and all the way down the front face of the building. If you’ve never been to Yankee Candle, that’s basically a five minute walk away. I left that event with two items (and zero signatures) :

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  1. A green headband with the number 34 on it, with a clover in the middle of the 4, which I wore exactly one time ever (the very next day).
  2. A green wrist band with the “THE TRUTH 34” on it, which I wore in some of my basketball games for good luck.

That arm band, with those words on it, exists because of a Shaquille O’Neal interview in 2001 (quoted above). It’s a nickname that symbolized a legacy, and it caught on because of the gravity of Shaq’s words. When Shaq says you’re The Truth, then you’re The (colorful adjective) Truth, and that’s that.

That’s the best thing about nicknames, if you ask me. They just come to life on a whim, and they become a part of a player’s identity.

It’s a thing that sports fans bond over with other sports fans. Everybody knows who Kobe Bryant is. Not everybody knows who the Black Mamba is. It’s what allows sports to become its own  language.

https://twitter.com/kdtrey5/status/882033584957136896?lang=en

This tweet is beyond ridiculous, but it’s relevant. Basketball is a language that writes itself in real time, and it’s awesome.

My favorite sub-plot of the current season is the ongoing discussion of Terry Rozier‘s nickname. It’s never usually this complicated – a nickname appears from somewhere and it catches on, or it doesn’t, without much input from the actual player. The debate as to what to call Rozier was brought to the man himself following a career-high 23 points against the Orlando Magic that earned him a post-game interview with Abby Chin. She asked him to tell us what’s better: T-Ro or Tito?

Anything goes, apparently. T-Ro, Tito Three Sticks, Scary Terry, T-Rozay, and whatever else we tweet in all capital letters is fair game. Somehow lost in the mix is Chum, which was sitting in front of us all along in his Instagram profile. I, for one, look forward to owning a t-shirt with “Three Sticks” and the number twelve on the back some day.

Let this be a lesson to everybody who wanted to nickname the Jaylen Brown/Jayson Tatum combo as soon as possible. Think of it like cooking. You ever turn up the heat because you’re impatient and end up with something burnt on the outside and uncooked on the inside? That’s what happens when you force bad nicknames. Jaywatch is fun to say, but Kid N Play? It rolls off the tongue as well a turd rolls down a hill.

Next: Boston Celtics Offense Stays Hot Against Pacers

I have no horse in the race to settle on a nickname for Rozier, if it must come down to one. I just want to highlight the natural process of nicknaming and politely ask that we all respect it. I hope you appreciate it as much as I do.

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