There's a reason sprinters start from blocks rather than upright, so I can see someone like KG trying to carry it into his sport. Gotta be heck on your knees going side to side however, and the added time it takes to establish your upright balance in basketball I'm sure would generally wipe out the advantage.
The dude's freakishly tall, sleek and skinny, so I can see where he'd remind himself of a snake in a way, and here he'd be a snake waiting in the grass to strike. All he'd need to do is refer to himself as getting into the 'cobra position' a few times, however, and any nickname potential would have taken off on its own. Oh well, interesting guy.