The Voting Is Underway!The Hall of Icons, a group focused on honoring the sport of professional paintball's greatest players, is entering its third year. After a very successful induction ceremony at the Summit Awards hosted by the NXL, the Hall of Icons by Ryan Greenspan and Quinn Nadu is excited for another year of voting to determine the next 10 inductees to the prestigious Hall of Icons. Led by a voting panel of judges with some of the deepest history and knowledge in the sport, we are proud to announce this years judging panel for the 2025 class of nominees. These judges will vote to narrow down the field of nominees to determine the inductees for 2025.
The Nominees for the Class of 2025These nominees below represent some of the greatest professional paintball players in history. Nominees are formed through the managing committee of members for the Hall of Icons and voted on by the judging panel. The major contributions towards nominees reflects their contributions as a professional player, their overall impact on their teams, and their legacy as a player.
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Notable Teams: XSV, Ironmen, Infamous
Tenacious, high-energy, and in-your-face, Nicky Cuba had an incredible paintball career as one of the best smack talkers the game has ever seen. From the start, Nicky established himself as an elite front player with teams like Aftershock and XSV. He brought a classic East Coast attitude and combined it with an endless drive to improve his game. In 2005 and 2006, he was arguably the best player on XSV as they took down the giant that was San Diego Dynasty. As his career went on he showed true versatility, with the ability to play all over the field with the Ironmen and Infamous. He was an emotional leader of many of the teams he played on, and his ability to inspire his teammates was always the key signature he put on every one of his dozen plus event wins. Nicky embodies what made the game great in the 2000s and his style of play became a critical driver to the modern game. Notable Teams: Banzai Bandits, Nexus, Great Britain
Affectionately known as Ledz, Antony was one of the sports first true trailblazers in the United Kingdom and has become one of the industry's most critical members. After winning events across Europe with the Banzai Bandits, Ledz went on to represent Great Britain in the inaugural Nation's Cup and eventually lead Nexus across the World as a professional player. After retiring, Ledz would form Planet Eclipse with close friends Jack Wood and revolutionize the sport as we knew it, bringing new technology and streamlined support to the game. His tireless commitment to grow the sport has made Ledz one of the staunchest patrons of paintball and his contributions on and off the field have created a lasting effect seen across all play styles. Notable Teams: Dynasty
Angel was the quiet and ultra effective snake player that was critical to Dynasty during the 2000s and a major piece of their dominance. He created the blueprint of what a snake player can truly be in the modern game; methodical, aggressive, and reactionary. His ability as a gunfighter is often overlooked, as maybe the best tool in Angel’s arsenal was his ability to go head to head against some of the best gunfighters in history from any bunker on the field. He brought a high level of athleticism to the game and was one of the fastest players in the league during his prime. His importance to Dynasty was showcased after the departure of Oliver Lang in 2006, when he continued to help lead Dynasty to more event wins and world titles. An elite ability to read routes on the field and consistently find ways to make his spot, he may be the best pure-snake player in the history of the game, and his crucial importance to the best team ever cannot be overstated enough. The EntrepreneurNotable Teams: All Americans, Philly Americans.
The Golden Age of paintball wouldn’t quite be the same without one of the sports greatest entrepreneurs, Adam Gardner. But, before he grew brands like Smart Parts, GOG, and DLX to some of the biggest companies paintball had ever seen, he was the fiery and indomitable leader of the All Americans in the 1990’s. One of the big three teams of the 90’s, Adam was the unquestioned leader on the field and his wild aggression, fearless demeanor, and competitive fire were the reason the All Americans became one of the winningest teams of the era. Gardner would go on to build and grow Smart Parts, a company that became the largest domestic manufacturer of paintball products in the country, and helped create some of the best selling products of all time such as the Ion, Freak Barrel System, Shocker, and Luxe. Even today, nearly 30 years after his first pro win, he continues to make a big impact on the 10 man field, making those same trademark wild and aggressive moves he was always known for. His dedication to the sport on both the professional and commercial side was a big reason the game of paintball reached the top of the extreme sports world in the 2000’s Golden Era, and his continued dedication to the pro game today has helped build and grow many top players under his company’s umbrella and the competitive scene as a whole. The CEONotable Teams: Image, Infamous.
A truly elite back line player, Travis anchored many championship teams over his 30+ year career in professional paintball as both a player and coach. His off-the-break shooting was best in the league for the majority of his career and his ability to change games in the first five seconds was unmatched. He could consistently eliminate players early and then apply relentless pressure from the backline to get his players down the field. His IQ and ability to read the field was also elite, and he was able to use his IQ to close games effectively for decades under teams like Image and Infamous. His effect off the field is just as potent as his time on the field as well. He worked as an industry rep for some of the biggest companies in the sport and then went on to create his own brand of products around the Infamous team. His company is now producing some of the best products in the industry and he continues to innovate new products in the game. The EvolutionNotable Teams: Ironmen.
Throughout the course of professional paintball, many tacticians have come through the ranks, and perhaps no player was more tactically precise than Ironmen legend Marty Bush. Throughout the late 1980s and 1990s, the strategy driven approach that Marty took to the game set the foundation for the style of the game we still see played today. His ability to simply walk a field and diagnose every major point of strength and weakness was elite, and his methodical style of play focused on putting his teammates in the best positions possible. He was one of the first players to actively scout and gameplan specific players and teams. Marty was the first elite pro player to emerge from the woods and find worldwide success as a professional player, and along with Fred Schultz, can be viewed as one of the game's first true international ambassadors. His individual skill with a marker was also way ahead of his time, and many would credit his techniques as a crucial base for how modern marker techniques have developed. The RockstarNotable Teams: Avalanche.
Rocky has and always will be the first true rockstar player in the sport of paintball. His wild attitude, reckless play, and the style he brought to the game came at a time when the sport was fairly tame and somewhat of an “old guys' game”. He brought the mentality of a rockstar and his style of play matched it. Alongside Chris Lasoya, he was the emotional leader of the Avalanche rosters that were nearly unbeatable in the late 90s and early 2000s before, in wild fashion, it all came crashing down from a wood side hill. Rocky also brought a new type of fashion and style to the game that was very influential during the emergence of the sport into the golden era. His contributions off the field as one of the game's biggest personalities cannot be understated and he was critical to the rapid spread of the sport's popularity across the World. He was consistently one of the best front players in the game during his prime and continues to be a high-level player in the classic circuit today. The TravellerNotable Teams: Philly Americans, Impact, Damage.
Tim Montressor was a visionary player who was incredibly versatile throughout his career in the professional league. Tim is one of the winningest players in the game's history and was able to rack up dozens of wins at multiple positions. Over his career he was an elite snake player, center player, and then began to transition into more of a support role where he became one of the best insert-type players the game had ever seen. His IQ and decision making on the field seemingly always ensured he was in the best position to succeed. Off the field, Tim was an unmatched industry rep and ambassador of the game. Tim travelled to countries all over the world playing, teaching, and supporting the sport of paintball. His work on the Iron City Classic led to a renaissance of the classic style of paintball and completely changed the landscape of what professional paintball can be. He also was a key figure at Smart Parts, DLX, and GOG over his near 20 years on the industry side of the sport, and assisted in the development and implementation of some of the most popular products on the market over the last decade. The LeaderNotable Teams: Ironmen.
Shane was arguably the first young professional player to come into the sport and outclass his veteran peers immediately. His most potent weapon has always been his mind, and his methodical approach to the game set the tone of the professional league all the way to its current iteration. With multiple World Championships in the 90s and 2000s, he is again one of the best examples of a multi-era dominant star. He learned from some of the best minds in the games history and added in his own style of methodical aggression to help build some of the best Ironmen rosters in history. Many players that rose to fame in the early 2000’s credit Shane for their passion and desire to achieve greatness in the game. He always commanded a quiet respect among all of his peers and teammates and he was consistently looked to for leadership. Shane is maybe one of the most influential players in the game in terms of his fingerprint on the modern stable of pros that many of us watched in the 2000s and 2010s. The SilenceNotable Teams: Image, Infamous, XSV.
Jon Richardson is perhaps one of the most underrated players in the history of the game. Often the most critical player on his team, his humble and quiet demeanor often kept him out of the spotlight. But, his game breaking moves, consistent pressure, and athleticism put him at the forefront of his opponents minds for two decades of pro paintball. Jon was one of the best in the game at reading paint in the air, finding an opening, and taking half the opposing team off the field with him. He was also a best in class gunfighter during a time when gun dominance reigned supreme in the sport. Winning world championships with multiple teams across multiple eras was just another accolade added to a long list of wins for Jon. He was one of the modern archetypes for how the “2” position plays the game; at any time he could become an elite attacker, or regain positioning for his team from the back line when their guard was breached. He best personifies the style of a silent star, always letting his play do the talking. The VoiceNotable Teams: Ironmen, XSV, Navarone.
Iconic, stoic, and everything that a true paintball ambassador should be, Matty Marshall got his start on the pro fields of Southern California in the late 1990s with historically great teams like Marine Team and Navarone. He then helped win multiple world titles and numerous events with the Ironmen and XSV. From the beginning, Matty had a methodical and measured approach to the game of paintball and was an effective front player who would break open games. He was one of the first players to do paintball-specific drills, and soon after he became one of the most dominant gun-fighters in the pro league. Matty is the game's best ambassador and he was among the first players to travel to Europe to play across the world professionally and promote the game of paintball. His dominance on the field transitioned into a writing and media career that has changed the way the game is portrayed in media, and he was a major part of nearly every piece of media that was critical to the game's expansion such as Push, Sunday Drivers, Heroes for a Day, and every major livestream. He continues to push paintball media to tell great stories and the way he has enriched the game for both players and viewers has been monumental for the sport’s growth in popularity over the last two decades. The DominatorNotable Teams: Aftershock, Ironmen.
The best back player to ever play the game, Todd Adamson is perhaps the best example of how support players can impact the game in multiple ways. Todd was a key part of the Aftershock teams of the late-90s and early 2000s that went on one of the most dominant runs of any team in the game’s history. With his steady presence from the back-line, Todd helped Aftershock become arguably the greatest team of all-time. Known for his elite marker skills off-the-break, and his ability to read the field and position his players like a master chess player, Todd quickly earned the title as one of the best back players in the game. His impact off the field is also substantial, as Todd and his wife Tami created and ran one of the most successful soft-goods companies in the early 2000s, Extreme Rage, which revolutionized the gear that players used to carry paint on the field. The FaceNotable Teams: Bad Company.
Before he was leading the largest tournament series in the World, Tom Cole was first and foremost, an elite pro player and leader of team Bad Company. Tom has always been an ambassador for the game and from his start in the 1990s he was always supporting and promoting the game to a worldwide audience. With Bad Company, Tom did what many thought impossible; he led the team to event wins using entry level, blowback paintball markers from Spyder as the rest of the pro league were using high-powered, electro pneumatic markers. Known as an elite communicator, Tom helped Bad Company win multiple events against the odds. He also developed many players that would become superstars in the pro leagues of the 2000s like JC Whittington, Jason Andre, and Wayne Davis. Tom was critical in player rights and the forming of the NPPL, and he currently is the head of the NXL Professional and Amateur paintball league. |