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Anthony Davis will return to Los Angeles to play against the Lakers on Saturday, November 29, in the NBA Cup.
Davis was traded to the Dallas Mavericks midway through the 2024-25 season in exchange for Luka Doncic.
The blockbuster trade was arguably the most surprising deal in NBA history, and it will be so intriguing to see how it pans out.
Neither team succeeded immediately after the trade, but they both have high expectations heading into the new season in October and their NBA Cup meeting a month later.
And there could be something more important than the result on the line when Davis returns to Los Angeles.
Marc Spears suggests Anthony Davis could have LA Lakers jersey retired
ESPN reporter Marc Spears thinks the biggest talking point ahead of the Lakers’ NBA Cup game against the Mavericks is Davis’ legacy.
He suggested that Davis could even be honored with a jersey retirement in Los Angeles after playing so well for more than five seasons.
The only issue is that, as impressive as he was, Lakers fans were often frustrated that he did not take the reins from LeBron James.
“I’m curious about how the Lakers fans feel about him and his legacy in a Lakers uniform,” Spears said. “He averaged 25 points, 11 rebounds, and two blocks per game for his five-and-a-half-season career.
“Is he worthy, because he’s going to be in the Hall of Fame, of putting that jersey in the rafters? Jamaal Wilkes is in there. He played a couple more seasons, eight seasons.
“Anthony Davis won a championship and an NBA Cup; I don’t know if Lakers fans care about that. Did he do enough to get his jersey in the rafters?”
Full list of LA Lakers retired jersey numbers
The Los Angeles Lakers are the most successful team in modern NBA history and have more legendary former players than most.
Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Magic Johnson, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are four of the 12 ex-players to have their jerseys retired.
| Player | Retired Jersey Number | LA Lakers Career Span | LA Lakers NBA Titles |
| Kobe Bryant | #8, #24 | 1996–2016 (20 seasons) | 5 (2000–02, 2009, 2010) |
| Wilt Chamberlain | #13 | 1968–1973 (5 seasons) | 1 (1972) |
| Elgin Baylor | #22 | 1958–1971 (13 seasons) | 0 |
| Gail Goodrich | #25 | 1965–68, 1970–76 (12 seasons) | 1 (1972) |
| Magic Johnson | #32 | 1979–1991, 1995–96 (13 seasons) | 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988) |
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | #33 | 1975–1989 (14 seasons) | 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988) |
| Shaquille O’Neal | #34 | 1996–2004 (8 seasons) | 3 Lakers (2000–02), |
| James Worthy | #42 | 1982–1994 (12 seasons) | 3 (1985, 1987, 1988) |
| Jerry West | #44 | 1960–1974 (14 seasons) | 1 (1972) |
| Jamaal Wilkes | #52 | 1977–1985 (8 seasons) | 3 (1980, 1982, 1985) |
| George Mikan | #99 | 1947–1954 (7 seasons) | 5 (1949, 1950, 1952–1954) |
| Michael Cooper | #21 | 1978–1990 (12 seasons) | 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988) |
LeBron will almost certainly join the exclusive list when he eventually leaves LA. He will have spent nearly a decade with the team and led them to an NBA championship in 2020.
The case for Anthony Davis is not so clear-cut. He spent less than six seasons on the Lakers and missed many games with injuries.
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