The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to see some changes this coming offseason after an early exit from the postseason. One in-house update involves the jersey number LeBron James will don for the 2021-22 NBA season.
Shams Charania of The Athletic broke the news Wednesday that James will switch his jersey number from No. 23 to No. 6.
As noted in Charania’s tweet, Anthony Davis will continue to wear No. 3 with the Lakers even though No. 23, which he donned before heading to L.A., is now available.
James wore No. 23 during both of his stints with the Cavaliers. However, when he decided to take his talents to South Beach to play for the Miami Heat, he changed to No. 6 and then returned to No. 23 upon his return to Cleveland in 2014.
After James settled on a move to L.A. in the summer of 2018, he elected to stick with No. 23 with the Lakers.
Coincidentally enough, it appears that James’ decision to return to a No. 6 jersey is at least tangentially tied to the impending release of “Space Jam: A New Legacy” this summer.
As James and the Lakers embark upon a critical offseason, the superstar also made it clear that the bitter end to the team’s challenging season has left him even hungrier than usual amid the disappointment. In a recent Instagram post, James promised “vengeance” upon the NBA while sharing footage from the blockbuster film “Gladiator.”
Now, with Wednesday’s news, it’s clear that James will embark upon his vengeance tour during the 2021-22 season with a No. 6 emblazoned upon his Lakers jersey.
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