Bill Russell. Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Celtics release Bill Russell-inspired city jerseys ahead of opening night

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated 10/17/22

It was announced in mid-September that the Boston Celtics would be paying tribute to the late, great Bill Russell by adding the No. 6 to the parquet paint this season.

On Monday, one day ahead of the team's 2022-2023 regular-season opener, another on-court tribute to the legendary Hall-of-Famer and civil rights icon was revealed.

Paying homage to a true champion and the Gold Standard of what it means to be a Celtic ☘ pic.twitter.com/ZUGRMWOfq8
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) October 17, 2022

The Celtics have released their Bill Russell-inspired city jerseys:

◽️ 11 gold diamonds down the sides for Russell's championships
◽️ Russell's No. 6 on the belt buckle of the short
◽️ Celtics wordmark inspired by Boston's Slade Bar and Grill, which Russell owned

@celtics pic.twitter.com/1pQhS0JUEk
— The Athletic NBA (@TheAthleticNBA) October 17, 2022

Less than two weeks after Russell passed away at the age of 88, the NBA announced that they would be retiring his No. 6 jersey. While no future players will ever sport the number again, a stipulation for the retirement included that all players currently wearing the No. 6 uniform would be grandfathered in, meaning they wouldn't have to switch numbers.

Among the 25 players to wear No. 6 last season was LeBron James.

Russell's No. 6 is just the third jersey to be retired across the four major North American sports, joining Jackie Robinson's 42 in MLB and Wayne Gretzky's 99 in the NHL.

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