The 38-year-old’s new, but old, jersey will be in the limelight on Tuesday night for the Lakers’ opening game vs. the Nuggets.
James has switched back and forth between the two numbers throughout his career, but it looks like he’s done with No. 6 out of respect for the late Bill Russell, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN back in July. The league retired No. 6 in Aug. 2022 after Russell died, but James continued to wear the number last season to honor the 11-time NBA champion.
This will be the second time James has worn No. 23 during his tenure with the Lakers. He donned the number from 2018 to ’21 with the team, then made the switch to No. 6 for the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons.
While wearing No. 23 with Los Angeles for three seasons, James helped the Lakers to an NBA title in 2020, and was named NBA Finals MVP that year.
He won two of his four NBA titles with the No. 6 back with the Heat in 2012 and ‘13. He wore No. 23 during his ‘16 title with the Cavaliers.
James has switched back and forth between the two numbers throughout his career, but it looks like he's done with No. 6 out of respect for the late Bill Russell, his agent Rich Paul told ESPN back in July.
23 — the number he started his career with and has worn at multiple NBA stops. Paul told McMenamin that James is making the switch "out of respect for Bill Russell.” Russell — the Boston Celtics icon and 11-time NBA champion — died in 2022. The NBA retired his No.
23. The reason is out of respect for the late Bill Russell, LeBron's agent Rich Paul told Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The NBA retired the No. 6 across the league but players already wearing the number were grandfathered in and could continue to wear it.
According to Rich Paul, friend and former agent of 'King James', "LeBron's decision was out of respect for Bill Russell". LeBron was among the last players in the NBA to wear the number 6, after the league retired the number 6 in memory of Bill Russell, who died in the summer of 2022 at the age of 88.
He was in No. 6 while becoming the NBA's career scoring leader last season, a number now retired by the league following the death of Boston Celtics Hall of Famer Bill Russell. Rich Paul, James' agent, told ESPN that James decided to make the switch out of respect for Russell.
Bryant himself shed light on this decision, revealing that it represented a new chapter in his career and personal growth. The number 24 held symbolic meaning for him, signifying a fresh start and a heightened sense of maturity and leadership on and off the court.
The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat retired the number 23 in honor of Michael Jordan. Jordan never played for the Miami Heat. Jordan is one of the 14 people to have a number retired by two different teams.
LeBron James to change jersey number back to 23 in honor of Bill Russell. Lakers and NBA reporter for ESPN. Covered the Lakers and NBA for ESPNLosAngeles.com from 2009-14, the Cavaliers from 2014-18 for ESPN.com and the NBA for NBA.com from 2005-09.
The Laker put on the No. 8 jersey to start his NBA career after snubbing college and taking on the challenge of playing in the best league in the world. He selected the number 143, his Adidas camp number, according to ESPN. When he was younger, he wore this number in Italy, which adds up to eight.
Curry wanted to wear No. 30 in high school because that's the number his father Dell Curry, wore throughout his NBA career. Thankfully for him, Davidson and the Warriors have a more robust equipment program so Curry has been able to wear No. 30 in honor of his father well after his high school days.
Vincent-St. Mary High School because the No.23, in honor of Chicago Bulls great Michael Jordan, was taken. When 23 became available his sophom*ore season, James took it.
James switched back to No. 23 from 2014-21 – his second four-year stint with the Cavaliers and his first three seasons with the Lakers – before wearing No. 6 again the past two seasons.
Fans will get to see Lakers star LeBron James sporting the iconic No. 23 again this NBA season after he wore No.6 the entirety of the last two seasons. The 38-year-old's new, but old, jersey will be in the limelight on Tuesday night for the Lakers' opening game vs.
LeBron James wore number 23 for the Cavaliers from 2003-04 to 2009-10, the Cavaliers from 2014-15 to 2017-18, the Lakers from 2018-19 to 2020-21 and the Lakers in 2023-24.
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