Getting your jersey retired by a franchise is one of the greatest honors for NBA players. Over the years, many organizations have done so and in the future, they will continue to do so.
When we think of NBA legends like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or Shaquille O’Neal, they have one thing in common: their jerseys are retired by NBA franchise(s). Each NBA team has had players in their history that they believe their numbers deserve to be hanging in the rafters.
Surprisingly, there are two teams that have never retired any players’ numbers in their history. The two franchises are – the Los Angeles Clippers and Toronto Raptors.
Previously, the Memphis Grizzlies were also part of this, but they will retiring two jerseys during the 2021-22 NBA season. The numbers that will be retired are Zack Randolph’s no. 50 and Tony Allen’s no. 9 on December 11, 2021, and January 28, 2022, respectively.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CTfkydRFCcn
It is quite astonishing that both teams haven’t retired any numbers so far. For the Clippers, one might argue that there hasn’t been any player who might be worthy to receive this honor until recently.
If their current duo of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George can lead the team to an NBA championship and spend a few more seasons with the team, they might see their uniforms hanging in the rafters.
For the Toronto Raptors, an argument can be made for retiring the numbers of the likes of Vince Carter, Chris Bosh, Kyle Lowry, or DeMar DeRozan. Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James recently spoke about this and believes DeRozan absolutely deserves the honor.
He spent most of his career with the team, and while he failed to deliver a championship to the team, he helped them make some incredible playoff runs. On the other hand, Kyle Lowry is another legend of the team. He was part of the incredible championship team of 2019, spearheaded by none other than Kawhi Leonard.
Despite being the no. 2 behind Leonard, Lowry still played a crucial role in that postseason. He did his job perfectly and if wasn’t on that roster, a case can be made, that the Raptors would have been eliminated earlier in the playoffs.
What are your thoughts on this surprising revelation? Which players do you think should get their jerseys retired by the Los Angeles Clippers and Toronto Raptors? Feel free to share your thoughts.
