What’s the most iconic jersey number besides 23?
In my opinion, 23 is the most iconic jersey number, and probably a lot of other people’s pick? If not then that’s a fine, but besides 23 which jersey number would you say is the most iconic?
33
Kareem, Bird, Ewing, Pippen and then other Hall of Fame dudes like Marc Gasol, Alonzo Mourning and Grant Hill
Spurs Boris Diaw clinches it
When I look at Boris Diaw, I think of Beethoven in the age of the romantics.
Back in the day, Bill had the only beard in the Western Hemisphere that made Bob Dylan’s look good.
Gerald from Hey Arnold
Kinda unironically, this does kinda show how ingrained 33 is in our minds when it comes to jersey numbers
Came here to says this. 32-34 are strong contenders.
Plus the legend of Hiroshima - 菊池! But that’s baseball. Probably biased after he just hit that line drive HR to left to take the lead today.
(Why am I up at 4:50am watching baseball when I should be sleeping? Because why not!)
And my number when I played as a Junior, don’t diminish me just because I played in the Dutch North Junior League! (or whatever it was called!) :D
And all of them are freemasons
33 is 3rd/4th. 32 is in the same boat as 33, just different players. Magic, Dr. J, Shaq, Malone, etc.
6 is 2nd, arguably first. It’s retired leaguewide.
Don’t forget Jud Buechler!
He wore 30 right?
For us and you guys yes. He was 33 in San Antonio
Bill Russell 6
Only number yet, which will permanently belong to a single individual going forward
Pretty sure both DrJ and Lebron wore n.6 and had some success with it.
Pretty sure I said going forward considering it’s been retired league wide in Russell’s honour
jaylin williams would like a word.
Last authorized player in the league to wear number 6!! May he live forever.
Why does he get to wear the number? Did Bill Russell himself grant him permission?
He was grandfathered in. Players that were wearing the jersey when Bill died in 2022 could still wear the number as long as they did not change teams.
i think bron was actually allowed to keep 6 too but changed to 23 “out of respect for bill russell”
Jaylin Williams has no respect for Bill Russell confirmed
He was also allowed because he had the financials to pay for it. Players have to pay a certain amount to the league to make up for unsold jerseys with the old number which is much more feasible for the richest player in the league compared to a 2nd rounder just getting drafted. Don’t know if that was enforced in this scenario but I think it would be a logical reason for it.
Which begs the question will his number 6 be the only one retired league wide or would Jordan’s 23 be the next one?
Most likely
For LeBrons sake hopefully MJ lives a long life and Cavs retire 23 for him before MJs passing
Yeah I’d imagine the league would allow them to retire Brons 23 under them though. No way they don’t
Because they only did it after Russell’s death.
33 pretty clearly. Kareem, Bird, Pippen, Ewing, Grant Hill, Alonzo Mourning, a bunch of other people. Magic and Shaq wore 32 because they couldn’t wear 33 when they were drafted.
33 was my first thought too, but shoutout to 34…..Hakeem, Sir Charles, lakers Shaq…..Paul Pierce, Ray Allen., Giannis more recently
Yes 34 is way up there too.
Thats how many points scored in 2 months
32,33,34 imo
This is the real answer. I’m a Rockets fan, so I think 34 takes it, but I can’t be mad at either of the other two.
All three are retired in Boston
McHale, Bird, and Pierce - not a bad trio
32
Shaq
Magic
Irving
Rapist from played in Utah
McHale
Walton
Edit: a word
Not from Utah, from Louisiana
Yeah don’t let him sully the good name of other Utah rapists
Key the goat
Speaking of which, 24 + 8 = 32
For me, it’s 91.
I get that it might not be for other people though.
Rodman was something else
Honestly my favourite player, even over the GOATs
Loved watching him play.
You see 91, you know what it means.
People talking about 33 and somewhat rightfully so. A lot of tradition and legacy behind that one, but in terms of being iconic I gotta go with 91.
30
For Kerry Kittles yea
Seriously one guy making this top three jersey number of alltime in nba says a lot.
looks like dick resting on testicles but legendary for sure
I think I am high
Now everybody got a blue 30 on they back 🤷
D*mn, that would’ve been Lenny Bias’ # w the Cs…..
3
Number 3 is to the NBA what 7 is to the NFL
Zero, though its taken on a dark reputation as of late
Wait what’s the dark rep??
I would assume he’s talking about season ending injuries? (Tatum, Hali, Donte, Dame)
Oh damn didn’t even think about, can add arenas in there too though not for injury… season ending though
His nickname being Agent Zero will always make him be the first player I think of for number 0, and I’m not even a fan of his.
That’s such a strong nickname
I thought he was talking about Westbrook lol
6, 32, and 3
6 Bill Russell Dr J Lebron
32 Shaq Magic McHale The Utah Creeper
3 Iverson Wade Chris Paul
These are the numbers with the most iconic players attached.
You right, I forgot
Bird Kareem Pip Ewing
33 is top 5 as well
32 Cooper Flagg (:
6
Jaylin Williams
This is the second comment I’ve seen that mentioned Karl Malone, but refused to say his name. I get that he’s a giant piece of shit, beyond comprehension, and should be in jail, and not celebrated.
But, when did we stop saying his fucking name? He’s not fucking Voldemort.
Seems like its pretty straightforward
Its a form of disrespect
Fuck em
If you don’t know what he did, which alot of people apparently don’t, seeing an insult instead of his name might make you curious enough to look up why so many people are calling him an assortment of insults and you’ll learn
Fuck him. Let his name be lost to time.
24
Sonics legend Desmond Mason.
24, 33 (Bird, Pippen), 34 (Shaq, Barkley, Pierce, Giannis) Rodman’s 91 is iconic also for its uniqueness.
Olajuwon 34
Oh definitely
Rodman wore number 10 at Detroit and Spurs but 10 is retired at the Bulls for Bob Love so he chose 91 which is 9+1=10. Rodman continued with that tradition by wearing 73 at the Lakers: 7+3+10. Rodman requested to wear 69 at Dallas but the league figured out what he was trying to do so made him wear 70. The league subsequently banned the number.
It bothered me as a kid knowing he jumped over 82 and went straight to 73
honoring the Warriors wins record
33 is probably THE number. Bird, Pippen, Kareem, Ewing, David Thompson, LSU Shaq, Alonzo Mourning, Marc Gasol
Rodman’s 91 is iconic also for its uniqueness.
91 is also Artest’s Jersey for Malice at the Palice
Kinda crazy I had to scroll this far to see 24. Like 33 and 34 had some greats, but when I think of the term “iconic” I think “widely known” and 8⁄24 are both way up there in that regard.
6 and 33.
Number 32 with Shaq, Magic, Malone, McHale and many more I think so
Cooper Flagg :)
8
probably just 24 because of Kobe
21, 32, 33, 34 in some order
21’s been used a lot and has a surprising number of big names too: Timmy D, KG, Joel, Jimmy, and Nique are all icons, plus Vlade Divac and Michael Cooper are both HoFers with stellar careers as well.
I own 3 NBA jerseys, all with 34 on the back. Olajuwon Rockets, Barkley Suns and Giannis Bucks.
32 and 33 were kind of the original 23, or 23 before 23…
For millennials i think 24 is pretty iconic too. #30 too.
8 and 24
1
77
In just the last two seasons 11 NBA players chose to wear #77 jersey number. Only 10 players in NBA history wore #77 before Luka.
Simple explanation is Luka wore number 7 at Real Madrid to honor his childhood idol Vassilis Spanoulis but it was already taken by Dwight Powell so he doubled it.
However, when fellow Slovenian Klemen Prepelič joined Real Madrid, Luka had the number 7. Luka changed to 77, saying: Prepelič took the 7. I respect him, as he is older. I went for the 77 instead.
He didn’t double it. He multiplied it by 11. 😉
doubled not in a mathematical sense, but visually :)
Imo, 3. Iverson, Chris Paul, D Wade. Or 33, Bird, Pippen, Kareem
For the older generation when I think of the jersey number 00 I think of Robert Parish.I don’t know many other players that wore a double 0 jersey in the NBA’s history.
Not super common, yeah. Always thought it was kinda funny that Mathurin wore it as a Pacer cause that’s also Boomer’s number lol
9.
33, Kareem and Larry Bird. 32 Magic. 8 and 24 Kobe. 6 Bill Russell. 13 Wilt’s number.
69 - the Rodman number we never got
I mean 23 still had two legends behind it,
24 cuz of Kobe and then 30 cuz of Curry, these mfs single handedly put these number in top three sold jerseys. Says a lot about there presence as well outside of Jordan and Bron.
edit-typo
33 and 3
Penny Hardaway.
Real ones know.
Number 24 has to be up there because the moment you see it in basketball your mind instantly goes to Kobe.
Kobe 24⁄8 and Iverson 3.
6, 24, and 41 were the first ones that came to my mind.
69
32 and 24 I think. Numer 1 also I guess, even though it’s not (yet) associated with a single player. But all the 1st picks take it and Wemby might have a chance to make it iconic for himself
77 is gonna be it with Luka and vj
32, 24, and 6.
32, 33, 34
Definitely not as iconic as 6, 24 or 33 but 41 will always be the most iconic to me
Possibly four future hall of famers wearing 0 (Russ, Dame, Tatum, big gap—Maxey/Hali
Other replies have covered them, but it’s basically 32-34, as they’re the numbers for a bunch of iconic big men. Including Shaq, who wore 33 in college, changed to 32 in Orlando, switched to 34 in LA because 32 and 33 were already retired, and eventually wore 33 for Cleveland.
If a franchise has had great big men, chances are at least one of them wore one of those numbers.
33 - Kareem, Bird, Ewing, Pippen, Marc Gasol, Grant Hill
32 - Magic, Malone, McHale, Bill Walton, Shaq (ORL)
34 - Shaq (LAL), Hakeem, Barkley, Giannis, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen
33, 32, 6 like others are saying
But after watching a highlight reel post below this one, I gotta add 30
Mikan was 99
I’d go with one of 33, 13, 6 or 0.
33 has Kareem and Larry Bird as the most iconic names (that’s what, nine MVPs between them two?) to wear the number, flanked by Patrick Ewing and Scottie Pippen. Shaq also wore it during his later years, but people will likely remember him more for 32 and 34.
13 has Wilt, Harden and Nash as MVP winners to wear it, PG is a future HoFer and defined the back half of his career with 13. There’s also Jalen Brunson, but he’ll be more remembered for his signature 11.
6 has a monstrous trio of former MVPs in LeBron, Bill Russell and Dr. J. Bron honestly might be even more remembered by some for being #6 because of his gold medals and the fact that he hit his absolute peak wearing the #6.
0’s more of a modern number and outside of Westbrook, doesn’t have any other MVPs, but the list is fun: Arenas. Dame. JT. Haliburton. Maxey. K-Love. Boogie.
Also, I wouldn’t sleep on Luka turning 77 into an iconic number. VJ’s already spawned as another 77 wearer and it looks sick.
67
Realistically in terms of overall global culture it’s 23, 24, 30
Some dude gotta pick 67 just for the jersey sales
45
34
33, but also 6
00
I don’t agree with all the people saying 32, 33, 34. Iconic, to me, is when I think of this number do 1-2 particular players immediately come to mind, a la 23 for Jordan and LeBron. I’d say 8⁄24 for Kobe, 6 for Bill Russell, maybe 00 for Westbrook, and 30 for Curry.
31, but I’m biased.
It’s 24 for me. Kobe turned that number into a personality trait for an entire generation.
the rapist rebrand personality trait
He chose to be one up over Jordan.
45 duh
6 is the only one retired league wide. Also Dr J wore it.
5 for Luke Kennard
12, 45
0
RIP Orlando Woolridge
As a Blazer fan, it’s #7 (B. Roy).
I will also always remember RoLo for wearing #42 through most of his career, because it’s the answer to life, the universe, and everything.
No. 6: Bill Russell, Dr. J, Walter Davis, Neil Johnston, DeAndre Jordan, Tyson Chandler, Andrew Bogut, Avery Johnson, Eddie Jones, Marquis Daniels, Trent Tucker, Bonzi Wells, Kristaps Porzingis
6 and 34
41 🥲