"I don't think he should be compared with the Russell situation" - Julius Erving not in favor of retiring Kobe Bryant's No. 8 and No. 24 around the NBA
The NBA announced on Aug. 11 that Bill Russell's iconic No. 6 jersey will be retired across the league. Russell is the first NBA player to receive the honor and just the third athlete across the major leagues in the U.S. But do any other players deserve the same honor?
In an interview with TMZ Sports, Julius Erving was asked about Kobe Bryant's No. 8 and No. 24 possibly getting retired. Erving doesn't believe that Bryant deserves the same honor as Russell. The Hall of Famer thinks that Russell and Bryant should not be compared.
"I don't think he should be compared with the Russell situation," Erving said. "We're fresh into that, but let's see how that works out. Maybe at some point in time. Bill was 86 years old, so address it like that to an 86-year-old.
"Multiple champions, multiple coaching champions, multiple on-and-off the court champion or whatever. There's no comparison. I wouldn't even try to compare Kobe Bryant to Russell."
Erving added that any Bryant-related tributes in the future should be done by the LA Lakers. Bryant spent his entire career with the Lakers, and some fans consider him the best player in franchise history. The Lakers retired his No. 8 and No. 24 jerseys in 2017.
"It's more of a franchise situation with the Lakers," Erving said. "If they wanted to do it, which I think they already have, that makes sense. But for the whole league to do it, probably not."
Bryant is considered one of the greatest players of all time. He was inducted posthomously into the Hall of Fame last year. His death has had a profound impact on the basketball world. His legacy will likely live on forever, even without the honor of getting his two jersey numbers retired across the NBA.
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NBA players who had two different jersey numbers retired
Kobe Bryant is the only player in NBA history to have two different jersey numbers retired by the same team. However, he's not the first player to have two different jersey numbers honored by different teams.
Bryant's former teammate, Shaquille O'Neal, had his jersey retired by the Lakers and Miami Heat. O'Neal wore No. 34 with the Lakers and No. 32 with the Heat. Shaq won three championships in LA and one in South Beach.
Meanwhile, Julius Erving had his No. 6 retired by the Philadelphia 76ers. Erving wore No. 32 with the New Jersey Nets, which was retired in 1987.
Earl "The Pearl" Monroe played just five seasons with the Baltimore Bullets, now known as the Washington Wizards, but they retired his No. 15 jersey. Monroe played the rest of his career with the New York Knicks, wearing his iconic No. 10 jersey. The Knicks retired his jersey in a ceremony in 1986.
Pete Maravich was a legend for the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks. His No. 7 jersey was retired by the Jazz in 1985, and his No. 44 jersey was retired posthomously from the Hawks in 2017.
Finally, Oscar Robertson also had his two jersey numbers retired by the Milwaukee Bucks and Sacramento Kings. The Bucks retired his No. 1 jersey in 1974 and his No. 14 jersey was retired by the Kings in 2003. Robertson originally played in the NBA for the Cincinnati Royals.