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Stories Behind The Numbers


kimball

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For most players -- probably all -- there's a story behind their number. Why they picked it or got it. Whether it was to honor a player, parent, sibling, mentor or some significant life event -- whatever the case may be. I thought this would be a fun place to share some of those stories. I'll start with a few, feel free to contribute some of your favorite stories as well.

 

Adam Ottavino (MLB); Colorado Rockies

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Ottavino is the only pitcher to ever wear zero. He said it's an "O" for his last name, and he has worn it since little league.

 

Gordon Hayward (NBA); Boston Celtics

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Gordon Hayward wears No. 20 as a tribute to Ginobili. The Baby-Faced Assassin says he looked up Manu growing up and would try to implement some of his skills into his own game.

 

Sidney Crosby (NHL); Pittsburgh Penguins

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Sidney Crosby wears #87 because he was born on 8/7/87. 

 

Ezekiel Elliott (NFL); Dallas Cowboys

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Elliott wears No. 21 in honor of the last Dallas Cowboy player to wear the number ... Deion Sanders.

 

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"I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific." Lily Tomlin

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http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/The_stories_of_the_Philadelphia_Eagles_numbers.html

 

How every player on the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles got their number

"The views expressed here are mine and do not reflect the official opinion of my employer or the organization through which the Internet was accessed."

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9 hours ago, kimball said:

Ezekiel Elliott (NFL); Dallas Cowboys

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Elliott wears No. 21 in honor of the last Dallas Cowboy player to wear the number ... Deion Sanders.

 

 

I don't doubt this is what Elliott said, but he's not even close. Seven different Cowboys wore #21 between Deion and Zeke, including a starting RB (Julius Jones) and a first-round pick (Mike Jenkins).

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oh ,my god ,i strong recommend you to have a visit on the website ,or if i'm the president ,i would have an barceque with the anthor of the articel .
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Brad Daugherty wore #43 because he was a big Richard Petty fan.

Disclaimer: If this comment is about an NBA uniform from 2017-2018 or later, do not constitute a lack of acknowledgement of the corporate logo to mean anything other than "the corporate logo is terrible and makes the uniform significantly worse."

 

BADGERS TWINS VIKINGS TIMBERWOLVES WILD

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Elfrid Payton wears 2 because his birthday is 2/22.

 

Aaron Gordon says he wears 00 because that’s the shape NBA fans’ eyes will make when they see what he can do (not completely inaccurate, considering his Dunk Contest performances)

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3 hours ago, whitedawg22 said:

 

I don't doubt this is what Elliott said, but he's not even close. Seven different Cowboys wore #21 between Deion and Zeke, including a starting RB (Julius Jones) and a first-round pick (Mike Jenkins).

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That's a great point. I grabbed it from a secondary website. I guess it should read ... in honor of Deion Sanders. 

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"I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific." Lily Tomlin

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13 hours ago, kimball said:

Sidney Crosby (NHL); Pittsburgh Penguins

sidney-crosby.jpg?quality=70&strip=all&w

Sidney Crosby wears #87 because he was born on 8/7/87. 

 

Chris Redman wore No. 7 because he was born on 7/7/77. 

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Most Liked Content of the Day -- February 15, 2017, August 21, 2017, August 22, 2017     /////      Proud Winner of the CCSLC Post of the Day Award -- April 8, 2008

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Here are a few NBA jersey number stories ...

 

Anthony Davis, #23 - wears the number in honor of LeBron James.

Paul George, #13 - because Bill Simmons suggested the nickname PG-13 with a number change.

Carmelo Anthony, #7 - #15 retired by the Knicks so he took 15 (Syracuse/Nuggets number) and subtracted 22 (HS number).

Dirk Nowitzki, #41 - He wanted #14 (his German team number), but Robert Pack wouldn't give it up so he flipped the numbers.

Metta World Peace, #37 - Because of Michael Jackson's record of having a No. 1 album for 37 weeks.

Metta World Peace, #91, #23 - In honor of Dennis Rodman (#91) and Michael Jordan (#23). I think I remember hearing he wanted to wear #33 for Scottie Pippen as well, but that's when the NBA made a rule about changing numbers frequently.

Damian Lillard, #0 - Because he's from Oakland, CA, went to college in Ogden, UT and his first NBA team was in Oregon.

Michael Jordan, #23 - Because he wanted to be at least half as good as his older brother (who wore #45).

Dennis Rodman, #73 - Because 7+3=10 (his original number) and because he won 7 straight rebound titles and 3 NBA titles in a row.

Donovan Mitchell, #45 - For Michael Jordan's baseball number.

Andrei Kirilenko, #47 - Two fold, the nickname AK47 after the rifle ... and because the rifle was first manufactured in his hometown in Russia.

Kobe Bryant, #24 - "It’s the length of one day, one half, one shot clock. This number is my promise to dominate every moment."

 

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"I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific." Lily Tomlin

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22 minutes ago, kimball said:

Here are a few NBA jersey number stories ...

Kobe Bryant, #24 - "It’s the length of one day, one half, one shot clock. This number is my promise to dominate every moment."

 

Sounds better than "I want two numbers to be retired."

Disclaimer: If this comment is about an NBA uniform from 2017-2018 or later, do not constitute a lack of acknowledgement of the corporate logo to mean anything other than "the corporate logo is terrible and makes the uniform significantly worse."

 

BADGERS TWINS VIKINGS TIMBERWOLVES WILD

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14 hours ago, BringBackTheVet said:

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/The_stories_of_the_Philadelphia_Eagles_numbers.html

 

How every player on the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles got their number

I appreciate the Super Bowl mention as much as the next Eagles fan but the article was written in 2016 so it's not technically how each player on the Championship team got their number.

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Bo-Horvat-e1415194697576.jpgFuture Canucks captain Bo Horvat wears 53 in tribute to fellow London Knights draftee Ian Jenkins, who died in a car accident. 35 is typically a goalie number, so he flipped it around. The only reason I bring this up is because the Canucks decided to allow him to keep the number, which set a precedent for them relaxing the policy against “non-traditional”  numbers they’d had for some time, which I always found odd that a team with such a historical mess of an identity would insist players wear specific numbers.

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