Michael Jordan's Jersey Number to Be Retired from the NBA?

This has been a topic among the most serious of basketball fans around the world. Should Michael Jordan's number 23 be retired from professional basketball? LeBron James thinks so after announcing today that he would change his jersey number to 6 from 23 next season. Many have agreed with James statement including NBA coaches Doc Rivers and Phil Jackson. Jackson's response was more notable since he coached Michael Jordan throughout most of his career when his Bulls dominated the basketball world in the 1990s. If the NBA does indeed retire Michael's jersey number within a few years, then that will cause a chain of players to drop their number as well. I believe LeBron's announcement is just a ploy to distract the media from his possible future with the Knicks since the constantly babble about it time after time. Wearing the number 23 in the NBA can be a burden on a player because fans and the media will automatically expect much more from you than other players who jersey numbers like 11 or 52. There have been players who chose the path of wearing that number, but there careers were not considered successful. One player that comes to mind would be Los Angeles Clippers forward Marcus Camby. Camby never managed to display his full potential in the league due to his excessive injuries. 2004 proved to be an achievement for Camby because it was his first time in his career to have played 70 or more games in a season. Camby's statistics are a bit impressive for an athlete who has endured roadblocks throughout his career. He has managed to garner more than 2000 blocked shots in an injury plagued career which I think is amazing. Very few players are lucky to reach that milestone.

As for Jordan's number being retired, I strongly doubt it will happen because the league still thinks it can produce another legend of his status. Personally, it will never happen and if the NBA thinks LeBron is their guy, they are dead wrong. LeBron James is an excellent play loaded with incredible talent, but Michael Jordan was and always will be the perfect player. Michael has changed the world of sports during and after his career. His trademark logo is possibly worth hundreds of millions of dollars according to Forbes. Michael had his charisma and that is something you do not develop over time.

Statistical data provided by ESPN.