What Numbers Did Michael Jordan Wear?

Michael Jordan is considered one of the best ever basketball players to exist to this date. The reason why the whole world admires him is because of his skills and achievements in the past. Michael Jordan seriously offered a great name to basketball and did what most players cannot do. The unbelievable things are what make him more extraordinary than any basketball player. Not only that, but his records and history speak for him and states what he is when it comes to serious play. If you are a real Michael Jordan fan, then you might have wondered what numbers did Michael Jordan wears with different teams, right? Well, I have an answer for that!

Michael Jordan has worn four numbers in his entire basketball career. Three numbers were for his NBA teams, and the fourth one was the one that he wore in Olympics. He wore all four numbers for a certain period, and there is a brief history behind them.

But do you know which jersey Numbers did Michael Jordan wear for different teams? Or was it the same team all along? Well, indeed, Michael Jordan switched other teams, and he wore different numbers with them. So let’s take a detailed look at all the details briefly to know what the teams were and what the scenarios were.

With which teams Michael Jordan wore different numbers?

Before diving into some more details, it is imperative to know which teams Michal Jordan wore different numbers.

One thing to note here is that Michael Jordan has indeed played for other teams in his career. But with some teams, he did not spend much time with them, and he was only able to play few games. Anyways, these are the teams with which Michael Jordan has worn different numbers:

• Washington Wizards
• Chicago Bulls
• America National Team

So you might now be thinking that what numbers he wore for the teams mentioned above? Let’s check them out, too, and find out those legendary numbers.

What number(s) did Michael Jordan wore with Chicago Bulls?

Most people don’t know this fact, but Michael Jordan spent most of his career with Chicago Bulls and spent most of his time with this team. So Michael Jordan had only worn the number 23 in his entire massive career with Chicago Bulls before he switched to baseball, that is. In fact, the number 23 got more popularity just because of Michael Jordan, and people started to recognize him with this number.

But there was one strange event that led Michael Jordan to wear another number, and it was pretty shocking for all. But do you know what that incident was and what number did Michael Jordan wore at that moment?

What other number did Michael Jordan wear with Chicago Bulls?

As I have stated earlier, an extraordinary thing happened with Michael Jordan, which might have also become a memory for him. That specific incident made him wear another number which was 12.

It was the 14^th of February, also known as Valentine’s Day of 1990 when the team competed with Orlando Magic. As soon as Michael Jordan reached his locker to get his shirt, he found out that it was stolen a few moments ago. Usually, there are replacement shirts available for the players for unexpected scenarios, but at that time, no replacement shirt was available for Michael Jordan to wear for that match. That is why he had to go with the number 12 shirt and amaze the world in the newest way possible. After that, Michael Jordan never wore that number, and he continued with his legendary number 23, which is still remembered by millions of basketball fans.

But wait; there is something else to this story. Michael Jordan left basketball and joined baseball in between his career, and things changed when he came back towards basketball. When he came back to join Chicago Bulls, he wore the number 45 in his starting games. There were no problems in wearing that number, but later, Michael Jordan decided to go back with his original Jersey number that was 23. Then he continued to wear that number until his stay in the Chicago Bulls.

What number(s) did Michael Jordan wore with Washington Wizards?

Luckily, Michael Jordan never had to replace his jersey number, and he continued his whole career in Washington Wizards with his remarkable number 23. Michael Jordan had a pretty twisted and short career at Washington Wizards, but he still made it worth his time due to his performances and achievements with them.

What number(s) did Michael Jordan wore in the Olympics?

Yes, Michael Jordan also played an Olympics and showed a world-class performance there. He was too good in the tournament that he also won a gold medal for his performance in the basketball games. But if you think what number he wore in the Olympics, then it was 9. The reason behind that was there were only numbers available from 4-15, and Jordan had to pick a number between them. And then he picked nine as per his likings and continued the tournament with the same number.

Why Miami Heat retired number 23 when Jordan never played for them?

It is one of the very confusing questions, and it should be answered accordingly so that the confusion of all fans would vanish. It is pretty common in different sports to pay tributes to different players through different things, but Miami Heat opted for a very different one. Instead of building his statue or doing any other thing, they reserved the number 23 for the greatness of Michael Jordan. They also released an official statement stating why they have reserved the number 23 as Michael Jordan was not planning to join them. They also stated that no one from Miami Heat will ever wear the number 23 shirt, and all players will honor his greatness by not doing so.

But the thing is, why they opted the number 23 instead of the other numbers? Well, as I have stated earlier, Jordan spent most of his career wearing the 23 number shirt, and that is why Miami Heat had to go with this number instead of the other ones.

Did the great Lebron James also change his Jersey Number when he joined Miami Heat?

Lebron James is considered as the sole rival of Michael Jordan because of what he has done in recent times in basketball. There is no actual denying that Lebron James has played significantly better in some aspects than Jordan, and that is why he is being compared with the legend Michael Jordan. But when Lebron James joined Miami Heat back in 2010, he had to change his Jersey Number, as he also wore the number 23 his entire career. He wore the number 6 in his career at Miami Heat and honored the demand of the team and the promise they made back in the days.

Not only that, but Lebron James himself admitted that the achievement of Jordan should always be remembered in some way, and that is why he also did not interfere with the jersey numbers.

Why the jersey numbers of Michael Jordan matter so much in the basketball world?

We all give importance to the person who is worthy of it. In the basketball world, there are very few players who are worthy of being praised for their statistics. If we take a look at the career of Michael Jordan, he indeed did a lot for every team he played. He won his teams matches, tournaments, and whatnot. That is why he is considered the best in basketball. Due to this reason, his Jersey Numbers matter so much, and people take this as an inspiration while playing basketball. If you see a young player playing basketball and he is wearing the 23 number shirt, one reason can be because of Michael Jordan, or the other one might be that it was the only one available at that specific time.

But in most cases, young players opt for the popular numbers because they know their idols wore that numbers and performed amazingly with those numbers.

Will there ever be someone as great as Michael Jordan?

The only one who comes close to Michael Jordan in the current era is Lebron James. We don’t really know if he will be able to break the records of Michael Jordan of many rings, wins, and scoring ratio. But he is undoubtedly very near to break some of his records. In the future, some players might show up who might perform better than Michael Jordan, but it will surely and unquestionably not be an easy task for them. They will have to work harder day in and day out to achieve what has been achieved by the great Michael Jordan. But let’s wait and see what fate has for him.

The Conclusion

It is effortless to remember all the numbers worn by Michael Jordan in his career, but it can be pretty hard to understand his lifetime career in basketball. He switched different teams and even sports, which also make him even more admirable. His passion for basketball dragged him again towards it even after changing the sport, and the rest is history.