Indiana State & Purdue stars’ hilarious nicknames go viral during March Madness

Indiana State center Robbie Avila and Purdue star Zach Edey were given hilarious nicknames that college basketball fans could not get enough of during March Madness’ opening week.

Avila is a 6-foot-10, 240-pound big man whose size has garnered attention for more reasons than his strong play helping lead the Sycamores to two NIT Tournament victories thus far.

A long list of nicknames characterizing the 20-year-old’s pale and non-defined body type, including “Larry Nerd” and “Milk Chamberlain” swept through social media.

One X user, @Just1n_Case1, dubbed the “Cream Abdul-Jabbar” nickname a “violation,” while another fan highlighted an additional nickname, “Steph Blurry.”

Purdue’s Edey also earned humorous praise for accomplishing a statistical feat that only one NCAA Tournament great and NBA Hall-of-Famer has done in the last 32 years.

The 7-foot-4 center became the first player to put up at least 20 points and three blocks in three consecutive tournament games since Shaquille O’Neal did so for LSU in 1991 and 1992.

O’Neal caught wind of Edey’s achievement and gave him one of his patented nicknames, “Zachille O’Neal.”

The four-time NBA champion’s play on his own surname for Edey had fans hysterical. It’s also helped further Edey’s profile as a potential first-round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.