What is retiring a jersey?

Retiring the number of an athlete is an honor a team bestows upon a player, usually after the player has left the team, retires from the sport, or dies.

What happens when a jersey number is retired?

When a sports jersey is retired by a team, it means that no future team members get to wear that number (though sometimes exceptions are made in special cases). Occasionally, a number might be “unofficially retired”, and it becomes an unspoken rule that people aren't going to be wearing that number.

What is the criteria to retire a jersey?

Criterion #3 Statistical Body of Work.
...
Criterion #1 Connection with the franchise.

  • Did the player play his most important years with the team?
  • Did the player play the majority of his career with the team?
  • Was the player drafted by the team?
  • Did the player retire with the team?

Is the 23 jersey retired?

The number 23 is probably the most iconic in the NBA. However, just six different teams retired the number 23 from their roster. The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat retired the number 23 in honor of Michael Jordan. Jordan never played for the Miami Heat.

Is 42 retired in all sports?

42. In a ceremony before the April 15, 1997, game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets at Shea Stadium, Selig declared that No. 42 – Robinson's number with the Brooklyn Dodgers – would be permanently retired throughout Major League Baseball.

18 related questions found

What was Babe Ruth's number?

3 jersey acquired by the Hall of Fame on June 13, 1948, the day Ruth's number was officially retired by the Yankees.

Why would Mariano Rivera wear 42?

For the African American community, Jackie Robinson is bigger than baseball. He broke the color barrier and opened up plenty of opportunities in MLB. That's why New York Yankees' legend Mariano Rivera feels “blessed” to be the last player to wear his number 42, before the league retired it for good to honor Jackie.

Why did Miami Heat retire Michael Jordan's number?

The Heat retired Jordan's number 23 jersey in April 2003 to honor Jordan's achievements and contributions in basketball. The Heat are the only NBA team other than the Chicago Bulls to have retired the number 23 jersey in honor of Jordan.

Why did Jordan wear 23?

Why why was Michael Jordan number 23? Michael Jordan chose to have number 23 as his jersey number when he played for Laney High School in North Carolina. It is believed that he choose the number because it was half the number of his brother Larry who wore 45.

Is George Mikan number retired?

*Minneapolis Lakers jerseys belonging to Jim Pollard (17), Vern Mikkelsen (19), Slater Martin (22), Clyde Lovellette (34) and George Mikan (99) are "honored" and hung from the rafters. They are still available with the exception of No. 22 (which is retired for Baylor) and of course, No. 34.

Why did the Magic retired number 6?

The New Orleans Pelicans have No. 7 hanging in honor of New Orleans legend Pete Maravich, and the Orlando Magic have retired No. 6 to honor the fans, aka "The Sixth Man."

Are any Nascar numbers retired?

NASCAR doesn't retire numbers; rather, it owns and leases them to owners on an annual renewal basis. Childress simply paid to keep 3 in reserve until he was once again ready to use it. Michael Waltrip (15) and Dale Earnhardt (3) go side by side late in the 2001 Daytona 500.

What numbers are retired league wide?

Only two numbers have been retired league-wide in their respective leagues; The No. 99 in the National Hockey League for Wayne Gretzky (also known as “The Great One”), and Jackie Robinson's 42 in the MLB.

Is Steve Nash jersey retired?

In September 2006, Nash's jersey No. 11 was retired, becoming the first Santa Clara student-athlete to receive that honour.

Can you unretire a jersey number?

Retirement of a number is (or at least should be) permanent. If the Cardinals will unretire No. 99 for Watt, they'll potentially unretire any other number if it suits their interests, from Larry Wilson's 8 to Pat Tillman's 40 to Stan Mauldin's 77 to J.V. Cain's 88 to Larry Fitzgerald's inevitably retired 11.

Why did Michael Jordan change his number to 45?

In an interview in Netflix's special 'the Last Dance', Jordan explained why he switched to number 45. “I didn't want to wear 23 because I knew my father wasn't there to watch me, and I felt it was a new beginning and 45 was my first number when I was playing in high school,” he said.

What age did Michael Jordan retire?

Michael Jordan retires at the age of 40 for the third and final time after an illustrious basketball career. He finishes with 15 points in 28 minutes of a loss by the Washington Wizards to the 76ers in Philadelphia.

Why is number 32 retired in the NBA?

The Miami Heat announced the organization will retire Shaquille O'Neal's jersey -- No. 32 -- during the 2016-17 season, making it the second NBA franchise after the Los Angeles Lakers to raise The Big Aristotle's jersey to the rafters. Shaq's number has also been retired by the LSU Tigers and Robert G.

What numbers are not allowed in NBA?

The league's rules behind jersey number selection are pretty straightforward: players can wear any number combination between 00 and 99—almost. The one number not allowed is 69 for . . . obvious reasons. The NBA can thank rebounding great and Hall-of-Famer Dennis Rodman for this little wrinkle.

Why is Jackie Robinson's number retired?

Number 42 had been retired for all Major League Baseball teams. This meant that no future Major League Baseball player could wear it. The number was retired in a ceremony which took place in 1997 at Shea Stadium to mark the 50th anniversary of Robinson's first game with the Dodgers.

How did Jackie Robinson get the number 42?

It seems that No. 42 was simply the number assigned to him by the Brooklyn Dodgers. It may have been just a simple number then but Jackie Robinson made the No. 42 one of the most famous numbers in sports history.

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