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The number 23 has become sacred in the basketball realm thanks to Michael Jordan. His ‘Airness’ is always the first to pop into mind whenever we see the number 23 on the back of players’ jersey, but that number has been worn by quite an interesting group of players as well.
We take a look at 10 of the best players OTHER THAN Michael Jordan to ever wear jersey number 23, starting with number 10:
10 – Kevin Martin
An 18 point per game career scorer, Kevin Martin has worn the number 23 for majority of his 11-year NBA career. Martin has had prolific trips in Sacramento, Houston, Oklahoma City, and now with Minnesota.
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Dick Raphael | Getty Images
9 – Calvin Murphy
One of the Rockets franchise’s all time greats, Calvin Murphy was there when the team was still based in San Diego and upon its relocation to Houston, playing for the same franchise throughout his career. Scoring 17.9 points and dishing out 4.4 assists while having 1.5 steals per ballgame in 13 years.
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8 – Marcus Camby
Marcus Camby spent 17 seasons in the NBA playing for the Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Houston Rockets. Defense was Camby`s calling card as he was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2007 along with multiple All Defensive Team selections. He also led the league in blocks per game 4 times.
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7 – Mark Aguirre
Mark Aguirre played 13 seasons in the NBA with career averages of 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3.1 assists. Aguirre played for the Dallas Mavericks, LA Clippers, and the back-to-back champion Detroit Pistons bad boys team of the late 80s.
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6 – Ron Artest
The former-Ron Artest, who’s now officially known as Metta World Peace, was one of the best lockdown defenders the league has ever seen. The former All Star and 2010 NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers was the Defensive Player of the Year in 2004 and holds career averages of 13.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.8 steals over the course of 15 seasons.
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Dick Raphael | Getty Images
5 – Lou Hudson
Lou Hudson played 11 seasons as a member of the St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks and 2 with the Los Angeles Lakers. “Sweet Lou” was a high scoring guard out of the University of Minnesota who averaged 20 or more points in 7 of his 13 seasons in the league.
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Derick E. Hingle | USA TODAY Sports
4 – Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis is a debatable choice in this list as he’s only played a few years but I am going out on a limb with this selection as The Brow has superstar written all over himself – no disrespect to those who wore 23 that are not on this . 24.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.1 dimes, 1.5 steals, 3.0 blocks, and a 30.8 PER in just his third year. That’s what I’m counting on.
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Dick Raphael | Getty Images
3 – Alex English
An 8-time All Star, Alex English is one of Denver’s golden nuggets, averaging 25.9 points over 11 seasons in the mile-high. English also played for the Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, and Dallas Mavericks.
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Nathaniel S. Butler | Getty Images
2 – Mitch Richmond
A former member of Golden State`s “Run TMC” trio, the sharp shooting Mitch Richmond had a highly decorated NBA career as he was named to 6 All Star teams (winning the All Star game MVP in 1995), 2 All NBA Third Teams, and 3 All NBA Second Teams. “The Rock” scored 20,497 points and canned 1,326 threes over the course of his 14-year NBA career.
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Kim Klement | USA TODAY Sports
1 – LeBron James
This one`s a no brainer. The 4-time Most Valuable Player and 2-time NBA Champion took a break from donning jersey number 23 for four years but he`s now back to his original digits and looks to add more luster to his already Hall of Fame caliber career.