Anthony Davis will get the chance to play with one of his basketball heroes this season, teaming up with LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers.
James, who publicly admitted his desire to team up with Davis in a pre-trade deadline post-game interview, has welcomed the big man with open arms, even giving up his iconic jersey No. 23.
“It was cool,” Davis told Arash Markazi of the Los Angeles Times. “I always looked up to him. As a kid, [James] and Michael Jordan were the two guys I [admired]. I didn’t get a chance to watch Michael Jordan live, but I watched LeBron a lot after he entered the league and he was the guy that I looked up to.”
Davis actually wasn't as hellbent on keeping the No. 23 that he's worn since high school, doing the same in college and his seven years with the New Orleans Pelicans.
“Being from Chicago, Jordan had 23 and he was my favorite basketball player for a while,” said Davis. “But honestly, I was No. 3 and No. 30 before I was No. 23. When I got to high school as a freshman, upperclassmen already had No. 3 and 30 and they get first say, so they pulled a jersey out of a bag and threw me the jersey and said, ‘This is the jersey you’re going to wear,’ and it just happened to be 23.
“Obviously, Jordan wore it and me being younger, watching LeBron, that number just stuck with me. It was definitely exciting to know I had that number to follow Jordan and LeBron, who wore that number as well.”
The sentiment is heartfelt nonetheless, as Davis will get to keep sporting the No. 23 while James returns to his days as the No. 6 supervillain, this time adding a top-five talent to play with, hoping to add even more in the near future.
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