Kyrie Irving rocked number two while winning a championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The 2023 NBA playoffs have commenced.
Sure, injuries to stars like Ja Morant, Tyler Herro and Giannis Antetokounmpo have soured the usually festive mood.
However, this year the championship is up for grabs with no true super team or outright favorite.
That is exciting for basketball fans because maybe some unusual suspects might hoist the championship trophy for the first time.
Can you imagine the NBA champion Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies or Phoenix Suns?
True basketball fans know the names of the new stars.
But how dope would it be for players like Paul George, Nikola Jokic or De’Aaron Fox to hoist the Bill Russell trophy, signifying the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player?
This is truly a new day for the NBA with legends like LeBron James and Stephen Curry at the latter stages of their storied careers.
James truly represents the new school superstar who changes their number mid-career even when staying with their current franchise.
The late, great Kobe Bryant changed his number from eight to 24 during his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Sure, Michael Jordan mistakenly rocked number 45 after his first NBA return from retirement.
But like Orlando Magic legend Nick Anderson once said, number 45 was not 23.
In today’s era of huge jersey sales, changing one’s number can increase revenue.
Houston Rockets shooting guard Jalen Green changed his number to four (his preferred number entering the NBA) from zero this season.
That’s Generation Z for you!
But RegalMag.com has love for the new school ballers and the old school hoopers.
Therefore, Regal wanted to pay homage to the those from the beginning of the NBA to present day by honoring the best NBA players to wear certain jersey numbers.
Additionally, RegalMag.com has included runners-up for many of the jersey numbers because like Lays, it is impossible to have just one.
The best player is the first name that appears after a number.
And the runner-up is the second name that appears.
For the most part, a player can only appear on this list once.
Why not a solid rule?
Well, it is hard to find many players who rocked numbers like 96 and 73.
Only two players were good enough and unique enough to choose those obscure jersey numbers anyway.
Those two eccentric hoopers are Dennis Rodman and Ron Artest, better (or not) known as Metta World Peace or whatever it is now.
So, without further ado, check out Regal Mag’s list of the best NBA players to rock every number.
0–Russell Westbrook, Damian Lillard
00–Robert Parrish, Kevin Duckworth
1—Tracy McGrady, Penny Hardaway
2–Kyrie Irving—Kawhi Leonard
3–Dwayne Wade, Allen Iverson
4–Joe Dumars, Charles Barkley
5—Jason Kidd, Kevin Garnett
6–Bill Russell, Julius Erving
7–Pete Maravich, Nate “Tiny” Archibald
8–Kobe Bryant, Antoine Walker
9–Bob Pettit, Tony Parker
10—Walt “Clyde” Frazier, Steve Nash
11–Isiah Thomas, Klay Thompson
12–John Stockton, Ja Morant
13–Wilt Chamberlain, James Harden
14–Oscar Robertson, Bob Cousy
15–Nikola Jokic, Earl “The Pearl” Monroe
16—Peja Stojakovic, Pau Gasol
17–John Havlicek, Chris Mullin
18–Dave Cowens, Cedric Maxwell
19–Willis Reed, Lenny Wilkens
20—Gary Payton, Manu Ginobli
21–Tim Duncan, Dominique Wilkins
22–Elgin Baylor, Clyde Drexler
23–Michael Jordan, LeBron James
24–Moses Malone, Rick Barry
25—Gail Goodrich, Mark Price
26—Kyle Korver, Hedo Turkoglu
27–Jamal Murray, Rudy Gobert
28–Alperen Sengun, Andre Iguodala
29—Marcus Camby, Pervis Ellison
30–Stephen Curry, Bernard King
31–Reggie Miller, Shawn Marion
32—Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Karl Malone
33–Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird
34–Hakeem Olajuwon, Shaquille O’Neal
35–Kevin Durant, Reggie Lewis
36–Rasheed Wallace, Marcus Smart
37–Ron Artest (Metta World Peace), Nick Van Exel
38—Kwame Brown, Dale Wilkinson
39—Dwight Howard, Greg Ostertag
40—Shawn Kemp, James Donaldson
41—Dirk Nowitzki, Wes Unseld
42—James Worthy, Connie Hawkins
43—Brad Daugherty, Jack Sikma
44—Jerry West, George Gervin
45—Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Tomjanovich
46—Bo Outlaw, Jason Collins
47—Andrei Kirilenko, Scott Williams
48—Walt Gilmore
49—Shandon Anderson
50—David Robinson, Zach Randolph
51—Lawrence Funderburke
52–Jamaal Wilkes, Buck Williams
53—Artis Gilmore, Darryl Dawkins
54—Horace Grant, Charles Smith
55-Dikembe Mutombo, Eddie House
56—Francisco Elson
57—not applicable
58—not applicable
59—RayJon Tucker
60—not applicable
61—not applicable
62—Scott Pollard
63—not applicable
64—not applicable
65—not applicable
66—Prince Brookfield
67—not applicable
68—not applicable
69—not applicable
70—Dennis Rodman
71—Willie Nauls
72—Jason Kapono
73—Dennis Rodman
74—not applicable
75—not applicable
76—Shawn Bradley
77—Vladimir Radmanovich
78—not applicable
79—n0t applicable
80—not applicable
81—not applicable
82—not applicable
83—not applicable
84—Chris Webber
85—not applicable
86—not applicable
87—not applicable
88—Nicolas Batum
89—Clyde Lovellette
90—Drew Gooden
91—Dennis Rodman
92—Deshawn Stevenson
93—Ron Artest (Metta World Peace)
94—not applicable
95—not applicable
96—Ron Artest (Metta World Peace)
97—not applicable
98—Chet Aubuchon
99—George Mikan
