Counting Down the Cavs: Breaking Down the Number 23 in Cavs History

23 days until the Cleveland Cavaliers begin their 2026-27 season against the Philadelphia 76ers and a famous number 23.

LeBron James raised the Larry O'Brien Trophy with Jim Brown by his side at the rally following the Cavaliers Championship Parade in Cleveland on Tuesday, June 21, 2016.Meet Canton Repository Photographer Scott Heckel 15 | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

It is very obvious the number 23 in Cleveland is known for only one man.

Although he may not be as beloved in Cleveland in recent times after his free-agency decision, LeBron James is the last guy to wear the 23, but before we get to him, what about the guys before him?

Gary Freeman, Jacob Ridgle, Rod Higgins, Bruce Flowers, and Carl Thomas all played fewer than 60 games for the team and do not have much NBA history, but I want to make sure their names are mentioned in case you may want to know all the players.

Rowland Garrett - 1976-1977

Garrett is the first guy to get more than one season on the team, but it was not even a full season. He played 74 games for the Cavs and averaged 3.1 points a game.

Mike Bratz - 1981

A few years went by before the 23 was seen again on the Cavs. Mike Bratz got 80 in Cleveland and had the best season of the previous players named. In the 1980-81 season, Bratz averaged 10 points and six assists.

Tyrone Corbin - 1987-1988

Nicknamed The Milkman, Corbin is the first of these players to have a long NBA career despite playing only two seasons in Cleveland. In his 1987 campaign he played 84 of 82 regular season games after he was traded from Phoenix after 30 games.

In 86 games he averaged 6.1 points. He played 16 NBA seasons, his three seasons in Minnesota he averaged nearly 17 points a game.

John Morton - 1990-1992

The longest tenured Cavalier on the list so far. Morton played three seasons in Cleveland and averaged just under 5 points a game in 107 appearances for the team. Unfortunately, he only made a total of 128 appearances in the NBA as he played just 27 games in Miami before the end of his career.

Derek Anderson - 1997-1999

The last guy to wear 23 before Bron and maybe the only one others may know. Anderson played his first two NBA seasons in Cleveland and averaged 11.3 points per game.

He made the All-Rookie team in Cleveland and also won an NBA Championship in 2006 with the Miami Heat.

LeBron James 2004-2011, 2014-2018

We all know this guy. LeBron will have his number retired by the Cavs at the end of his career. He leads the Cavs in over 30 distinct statistical categories. One of the only categories he does not lead in is blocks which is held by Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

James is an all-time NBA player and one of the greatest of all time. He led the Cavs to their one and only NBA Championship in 2016 and is now entering his 24th NBA season in Philadelphia.

23 is synonymous with James, but a number like 24 has a lot of stories in team history. Tomorrow, for the final day of September we go to another retired Cavs number.