PORTLAND, OREGON - FEBRUARY 09: Anfernee Simons #1 of the Portland Trail Blazers drives to the hoop against the Los Angeles Lakers during the second quarter at Moda Center on February 09, 2022 in Portland, Oregon. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Anfernee Simons is one of the top young players in the NBA right now, but one of the most asked questions about him is that why is the Portland Trail Blazers star called “Ant”?
Anfernee Simons is one of the top young talents in the NBA at the moment. The Portland Trail Blazers star is a shooting guard who stands at 6’3”, and has been turning out for the Blazers since getting drafted by them in 2018. The 23-year-old is soon turned into one of the Blazers’ most consistent performers – and put on a show for the Blazers in their last win this season.
The Blazers went up against the Los Angeles Lakers in their latest win this season and trailed the Lakers in the third quarter by quite a margin. But just as the game seemed to slip out of their hands, it was the 23-year-old Simons who went on a bit of a hot streak – and completed all six out of his attempted three pointers in the period to keep the Blazers in the contest.
The Blazers completed a turnaround in the fourth quarter to steal the victory, and it was Simons’ performance that was lauded the most. Simons is quickly growing into a household commodity in Portland and the rest of the NBA with his consistent performances as a shooting guard for the Blazers, and one of the most asked questions about him is his unusual nickname.
There is a reason behind Simons being unusually nicknamed.
When asked in an interview about who nicknamed him as Ant, Simons said that it was his mother. “Yeah, a lot of people couldn’t pronounce my name,” he said. “And she (his mother) just said, ‘Ant.’ It’s much easier. When someone asks me for my name at a restaurant, I always use someone else’s name. I just tell them, ‘John’ or something. An easy name.”
Simons was named after famous NBA player Anfernee Hardaway – but often goes by “Ant” because of not many people being familiar with the name. However, if he keeps playing in this kind of form, both him and his nickname will soon be mainstream in no time.
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