LeBron James can not give his number 23 to his new teammate at the Lakers Anthony Davis because Nike prevents him for commercial reasons, said several sources Friday.
The number exchange between James, who carried the N.23 during all his years in Cleveland (2003-2010 then 2014-2018) and the season spent at the Lakers, and Davis, who wore it for 7 seasons in New Orleans was reportedly denied for commercial reasons, the US media ESPN and Yahoo Sports reported citing unnamed sources.
If James were to recover the number 6 he was wearing in Miami (2010-2014), the shortfall would amount to tens of millions of dollars for his equipment supplier, who would end up with a large stock of jerseys already printed on the arm , according to ESPN.
The number change request was made after the NBA deadline of March 15, but the league would have accepted it if Nike had agreed.
Forced by his equipment supplier, James finally decided to postpone his change of number to respect his fans who have already bought his flocked jersey number 23.
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Anthony Davis, who will be presented Saturday to the Lakers, posted a photo of him on social networks Friday to announce that he will finally wear the N.3, his number when he was in primary.
