NBA retires Bill Russell’s number: Who will be the last gamer to use No. 6?

In honor of the famous Bill Russell, the NBA retired his number league-wide on Thursday. Nobody will use No. 6 for the Orlando Magic or Sacramento Kings once again.

Actually, even prior to this news, no one was going to use No. 6 for the Magic or Kings. Both franchises retired it for “the sixth man,” i.e. their fans. This is the example you find out when you’re investigating who most just recently used the number for every single group and who may be the last to use it in the whole league.

Players using No. 6 entering into next season “will be grandfathered,” the NBA revealed in a news release. Should any of these gamers alter groups, they will have the ability to continue using No. 6, according to a league representative. 

This indicates that, for groups that had actually not currently retired the number, it is not strictly precise to state that nobody will use it once again. That stated, here are the gamers who most just recently used No. 6 for every single group in the league:

• Atlanta Hawks: Lou Williams, 2021-22 — Williams, whose 2nd stint with his home town group — and very first using No. 6 — started at the 2021 trade due date, is a complimentary representative.     
• Brooklyn Nets: David Duke Jr., 2021-present
• Boston Celtics: Bill Russell, 1956-1969
• Charlotte Hornets: Jalen McDaniels, 2019-present
• Chicago Bulls: Alex Caruso, 2021-present
• Cleveland Cavaliers: Moses Brown, 2022
• Dallas Mavericks: Kristaps Porzingis, 2019-22
• Denver Nuggets: DeAndre Jordan, 2022-present
• Detroit Pistons: Hamidou Diallo, 2021-present
• Golden State Warriors: Alen Smailagic, 2019-21
• Houston Rockets: Kenyon Martin Jr., 2020-present
• Indiana Pacers: Lance Stephenson, 2010-12; 2022 — Stephenson, whose 3rd stint in Indiana started in January with a series of COVID challenge exceptions and 10-day agreements, is a complimentary representative. 
• Los Angeles Clippers: Moses Brown, 2022-present — Brown is the only gamer aside from the next person on this list to appear on it more than when. 
• Los Angeles Lakers: LeBron James, 2021-present
• Memphis Grizzlies: Kenneth Lofton Jr., 2022-present — Lofton, who signed a two-way agreement with Memphis after going undrafted, has actually used No. 6 in marketing pictures and used the number in summertime league. There is no number noted beside his name, nevertheless, on the Grizzlies’ main lineup page. When asked through e-mail if Lofton had actually formally been released the number, the group did not instantly react. (Otherwise, the Grizzly to use No. 6 most just recently was Shaq Buchanan, who appeared in 2 video games in late December last season on a 10-day agreement.)
• Miami Heat: LeBron James, 2010-2014
• Milwaukee Bucks: Luca Vildoza, 2022-present
• Minnesota Timberwolves: Jordan McLaughlin, 2019-present
• New Orleans Pelicans: Tyrone Wallace, 2022 — If not for Wallace signing 2 10-day agreements with the Pelicans in March, Nickeil Alexander-Walker would represent 2 groups on this list. 
• New York Knicks: Quentin Grimes, 2021-present
• Oklahoma City Thunder: Jaylin Williams, 2022-present
• Orlando Magic: Patrick Ewing, 2001-02 — Ewing, who invested his last season in the NBA with the Magic, is the only gamer to ever use No. 6 for the group. 
• Philadelphia 76ers: Julius Erving, 1976-1987
• Phoenix Suns: Walter Davis, 1977-1988 — Davis is the only gamer to ever use No. 6 for the Suns.
• Portland Trail Blazers: Keon Johnson, 2022-present
• San Antonio Spurs: Avery Johnson, 1992-1993; 1994-2001
• Sacramento Kings: Bob Burrow, 1956-57 — When Burrow used No. 6, the franchise was referred to as the Rochester Royals. The group relocated to Cincinnati the next year, and, while it has actually considering that played house video games in Kansas City, Omaha and Sacramento, something has actually stayed constant: Nobody has actually used No. 6.  
• Toronto Raptors: Cory Joseph, 2015-17
• Utah Jazz: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, 2022-present
• Washington Wizards: Kristaps Porzingis, 2022-present

So, who may be the last gamer to use No. 6 on an NBA court? Of the 16 gamers presently using it (consisting of Lofton, leaving out Lou Williams and Stephenson), 5 were born in the 2000s:

• Kenneth Lofton Jr. (born Aug. 14, 2002)
• Jaylin Williams (born June 29, 2002)
• Keon Johnson: 20 (March 10, 2002)
• Kenyon Martin Jr (Jan. 6, 2001)
• Quentin Grimes (May 8, 2000)

Additionally, David Duke Jr. and Moses Brown share a birthday: Oct. 13, 1999. 

It is possible that the last gamer to use No. 6 in the NBA will not remain in the above group, however those people will all be 22 or more youthful when training school starts in September and will be enabled to use it throughout of their professions. If you’re attempting to make an informed guess, that’s an excellent location to begin.