And neither has worn anything but the number you can see up above. 1 for less than a single season.ĬP3 and Wade may still be playing ball, but they've already put together Hall of Fame legacies. The only time he put on anything else was during his brief time with the Detroit Pistons in 2009, when he dropped down to No. He wore it when he scored over 30 points per game four times over the course of six seasons, and he managed to complete his memorable crossover and stepover against Tyronn Lue in the exact same jersey. 3 embroidered on his jersey for the vast majority of his stellar career. Of the 266 players to put this uniform on, Allen Iverson, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade stand out above all else. 3 jersey, but they've paled in comparison to a trio of threes who thrived/are thriving after the turn of the century. Guys like Steve Francis, Stephon Marbury, John Starks and Gerald Wallace played excellent basketball while wearing the No. This number has been all about the modern standouts. No. 44 (Danny Ainge, George Gervin, Elvin Hayes, Dan Issel, Rick Mahorn, Pete Maravich, Jerry West, Paul Westphal) In modern times, Tayshaun Prince and Michael Redd have been the standard-bearers, though some of the aforementioned players from 2013-14 could pick up the torch sooner rather than later. 22, while Larry Nance and Rolando Blackmon ushered it into the next era of the NBA. 22 plastered across his chest, even if that number came in multiple colors as the Lake Show changed locations.Įd Macauley, Slater Martin, John Drew and Dave DeBusschere were other old-school standouts who claimed No. The versatile 6'5" swingman excelled in so many facets of the game, but he always went to work with No. Though Clyde Drexler isn't far behind, Elgin Baylor is the headliner for this group, a Hall of Famer from the Los Angeles Lakers who stands near the top of the pack of players who never managed to win a championship. However, some have worn it better than others. 22 jersey, including 16 members of 2013-14 rosters (Isaiah Thomas, Matt Barnes, Rudy Gay and Taj Gibson, most notable among them). Over the course of NBA history, 272 different players have thrown on the No. Note: All uniform information comes from the uniform archives, which are wonderful rabbit holes if you need to waste time. So, even without using numbers, let's move on to.the numbers. It's not enough for a Hall of Famer to wear a certain number in the twilight of his career, unless he also did the same in his prime. There is no metric behind these rankings it's purely subjective, based not only on the names who put the uniforms in question on, but also when they did so and for how long.
There are some numbers that have experienced far more success than others, thanks to the decisions of legends to put them on night after night. The reasons behind numbers are purely anecdotal, but they've still led to some digits and combination of digits that have emerged as the most successful jersey numbers in NBA history. You associate yourself with a number and a lot of things in your life may go around that. At the end of the day, a lot of people won't know your name because people associate you with a number. It could be a deal breaker, and I totally understand why. I've heard of people who wouldn't sign with a team because they didn't have a particular jersey number. So, what's in a number? Potentially a lot, as Dwyane Wade-who you might quickly associate with No. It has no significance."īut for others, the numbers they wear night in and night out might hold a great deal of meaning. 2 as he told Justin Tejada of back in 2012: " That was just a random number I picked when I got drafted. That's what Kyrie Irving did, for example, in picking No. Sure, some players might pick their uniform number out of a hat or show no care whatsoever, taking whatever's available.