Michael Jordan retired from the NBA in 2003. 21 years later, people still struggle to find words to express his contribution to the sport. Yet it seems ESPN analyst Jalen Rose has found the perfect way to immortalize Jordan. Rose took to Twitter/X and said every team in the NBA should be retiring number 23 to honor Jordan.
But the 7X NBA champion Robert Horry disagrees with the idea. On his Big Shot Bob Podcast, he was asked if he agreed to retiring the jersey, and his co-host Brandon Harper agreed to it. But Horry said, “I’m not, I love MJ but nah.”
He said that other people have contributed to the game and that shouldn’t be forgotten before Jordan, continuing that people like Kareem Abdul Jabbar his number 33 also have similar significance and should be done first.
Michael Jordan’s legacy on and off the court
There is no disputing Jordan’s legacy. He was the one who popularized the league and made a lot of people change their style according to Robert Horry. “ Don’t get me wrong the guy who’s changed the league you know as far as you know. Everybody went to wear you know black socks, everybody want to wear baggy shorts to tight shorts. You know it had a lot to do with you know MJ.“
Jalen Rose followed his first tweet with multiple tweets praising Jordan. He even said ” Don’t front…you and your kids stay thirsty for Jordan’s. No other athlete has this stranglehold on the public. Bow down.” His tweet seems to get a lot of support from fans. Rose’s stance on Jordan selling like a hot take is not wrong. Wearing Jordans is not only a style statement but a sense of pride for a lot of people.
Horry feels the only thing that can be debated about jersey retirement is what about the teams that have already retired in honor of other players. He even hypothetically agreed to the decision and asked the question, “All right let’s go to let’s say uh Sacramento now you retire the number across the league but the number’s already retired because they belong to Mitch Richmond you know. ”
Michael Jordan’s number 23 is legendary, and everybody associates number 23 with His Airness. Since then, many players have donned the jersey. Currently, LeBron James is the best-known player to wear 23. He took 23 because his No. 6 was retired league-wide in honor of the great Bill Russell.
