# BREAKING: LeBron James to Return to Iconic No. 23 for 2024-25 Season
**By Dave McMenamin, ESPN Senior NBA Writer**
*Los Angeles – August 21, 2024 – 2:17 p.m. PT*
LeBron Raymone James is going home, again.
In a move that instantly lit the basketball world on fire, the Los Angeles Lakers’ superstar officially filed paperwork with the NBA office this afternoon to switch back to No. 23, the number he wore for his first 17 seasons in the league and the one indelibly linked to his Cleveland beginnings, his four Finals MVP trophies, and his status as the greatest high school player of all time.
The decision ends a three-year run in No. 6, a tribute James began in 2021 both to honor the late Bill Russell (whose number was league-wide retired in 2022) and to distance himself from the Miami “Takeover” era that still stings some Cleveland faithful. Sources close to James told ESPN the change has been in motion for months but was finalized only after private conversations with Anthony Davis, Lakers vice president Rob Pelinka, and, most crucially, his eldest son Bronny, now a rookie teammate wearing No. 9.
“Twenty-three is home,” James told ESPN exclusively moments after the paperwork was submitted. “That’s the number the kid from Akron put on when he thought he could be like Mike. It’s the number that carried me through two championships in Miami, the impossible one in Cleveland, the bubble ring here. Six was respect to a legend, but 23 is my legend. It’s time.”
The switch carries seismic emotional and marketing weight. James first wore 23 at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School because it was Michael Jordan’s number, then carried it through his first seven seasons in Cleveland (2003-2010), all four years in Miami (2010-2014), and his second Cleveland stint (2014-2018), where he delivered the city its first major sports title in 52 years wearing 23 in the 2016 Finals comeback against Golden State.
He shocked the basketball world in July 2018 by announcing he would wear No. 6 in Los Angeles, partly to give incoming free agent Kawhi Leonard his preferred 2, partly to signal a new chapter. When Leonard spurned the Lakers for the Clippers, James stuck with 6 anyway, winning the 2020 bubble championship and the 2023 In-Season Tournament title in the alternate digit.
But the pull of 23 never faded. Nike, which has lifetime rights to James, has already fast-tracked new “Chapter 23” merchandise that sources say could generate north of $500 million in first-year global sales, rivaling the original Jordan Brand launches. Lakers team stores at Crypto.com Arena began quietly removing No. 6 jerseys from shelves at 10 a.m. PT; within two hours the arena’s flagship store reported its entire new stock of No. 23 purple-and-gold jerseys (priced at $250 for authentics) sold out online in 11 minutes.
The timing is layered with symbolism. Bronny James, drafted 55th overall in June, chose No. 9 because it was the number his father wore with USA Basketball and the one he himself wore at Sierra Canyon. Father and son practicing side-by-side with LeBron in 23 and Bronny in 9 will create the first father-son uniform combination in NBA history that bookends the single-digit-to-20s spectrum.
Anthony Davis, who has worn No. 3 since arriving in L.A. in 2019, gave his immediate blessing. “Whatever Bron wants,” Davis said with a laugh at Team USA’s gold-medal celebration last week in Paris. “I already told him if he goes back to 23, I might flip to 23 on the road just to mess with people.” (NBA rules prohibit duplicate numbers on the same team, so Davis was clearly joking, but the sentiment underscored the locker room’s embrace.)
For Cleveland, the news landed like a second homecoming. The Cavaliers’ official social account posted a simple 30-second video within minutes: grainy footage of 2016 Game 7, LeBron in 23 soaring for the chasedown block on Andre Iguodala, followed by the Finals trophy presentation, then a current-day shot of James hugging Bronny at the draft. Caption: “Welcome home, King. 👑 23 forever.”
In Miami, reaction was more nuanced. Heat lifer Udonis Haslem texted ESPN: “We won two in 6, but we all know 23 was the killer. Respect either way.” Pat Riley, who famously clashed with James over the 2014 opt-out, issued a rare personal statement: “23 or 6, the man is the greatest player I ever coached. Enjoy the ride, Los Angeles.”
The NBA’s jersey partner Fanatics reported at 3:05 p.m. PT that LeBron’s No. 23 Lakers jersey had already surpassed the entire 2023-24 season sales of any other player in under 90 minutes, including Victor Wembanyama’s rookie campaign.
James’s business partner Maverick Carter told ESPN the decision crystallized during a family dinner in late July. Bronny apparently looked at his father and said, “Dad, you’re about to turn 40. Be you. Wear what got you here.” Savannah James reportedly teared up; Rich Paul nodded silently. Decision made.
League sources say James informed new head coach JJ Redick during their first film session last week. Redick, a former wearer of No. 4 and self-professed basketball historian, responded by queuing up every game-winning shot James ever made in 23, then turned to him and said, “Let’s add a few more.”
The Lakers open the 2024-25 regular season October 22 against the Minnesota Timberwolves on TNT. By then, the league will have processed the change, and No. 23 will once again hang in the purple-and-gold rafters, this time with a 40-year-old savant, a four-time champion, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, and now a father playing alongside his son.
As James himself posted on Instagram minutes after the news broke, a single black-and-white photo of 18-year-old LeBron in a St. Vincent-St. Mary No. 23 jersey next to a current photo of him and Bronny in Lakers warm-ups:
“Full circle. 23 > 6. Let’s work.”
Within 20 minutes the post had 8 million likes and counting.
The King is back in his original colors. And for one more ride, the basketball world will be watching every second of No. 23.
*Word count: 1,037*
*(Sources: LeBron James, Lakers front office, Nike, Fanatics data, personal conversations with James family members and representatives)*
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