Lakers star LeBron James will change his uniform number from 6 to 23 next season.
“It’s LeBron’s decision,” Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “He chose to out of respect for Bill Russell.”
The NBA retired the No. 6 of Boston Celtics hall-of-fame center Bill Russell league-wide last season but James and other players currently wearing the number were allowed to continue wearing it.
James won his last championship with the Lakers while wearing No. 23 and won his only championship with the Cleveland Cavalier while wearing No. 23. James originally was going to switch from No. 23 to No. 6 to give the number to Anthony Davis, who wore No. 23 with the New Orleans Pelicans, but Davis decided to keep No. 3 after he and James won a championship with the Lakers in 2020.
