Anthony Davis will not trade numbers with LeBron James this season, but could for the next one

When Anthony Davis arrived with the Los Angeles Lakers during the summer of 2019, one of the ways that his new teammate, LeBron James, tried to make him feel welcome was by giving him his No. 23 jersey to wear. Davis had previously only worn No. 23 in the NBA, and the plan was for James to switch to No. 6, the number he wears in practice and wore with the Miami Heat.

James even presented Davis with the jersey in a parking lot, evidently outside of a store where he had it customized, or something:

There was only one problem: Nike had already made too many No. 23 jerseys with James’ name on them. He and Davis had missed the deadline to switch, and so Davis instead wore No. 3, with the plan originally being for them to switch the following season.

However, it seems No. 3 grew on Davis, as according to a team spokesperson, he will not be switching jersey numbers this year. He will stick with the only number he’s worn for the purple and gold — and the number he wore in high school — as he starts his new, five-year contract in Los Angeles.

So if you were holding out on getting a Davis jersey to make sure he a) stayed with the Lakers and b) wasn’t going to switch numbers on you, you can go ahead and get one now without fear. May I recommend the new throwback jerseys they just confirmed today? That No. 3 looks incredible in white and blue, and will remain in those colors, as well as purple and gold, for at least the next season.

Update: It looks like they could change the following season, however:

Chasing No. 6 in No. 6? It would be strange to change jerseys at that point, but the symbolism could be pretty cool, especially if the Lakers get James his fifth title this year.

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