Samuel Add-ems
Watching Denver dismantle Boston in the fourth quarter last week, I tried to find some solace, a little hope for the near future. Maybe there’s something here:
The Boston Celtics’ best lineup includes the following players & jersey numbers:
Derrick White | 9
Jrue Holiday | 4
Jaylen Brown | 7
Jayson Tatum | 0
Kristaps Porzingis | 8
Sum: 28
All five players wear jerseys in the single digits.
Is this weird?
Is this the lowest such total in the NBA? Ever?
For context, here is Denver’s best lineup:
Jamal Murray | 27
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | 5
Michael Porter, Jr. | 1
Aaron Gordon | 50
Nikola Jokic | 15
Sum: 98
An investigation was necessary. Does Boston have the lowest jersey sum in the league?
Before reading further, make your pick:
An Investigation
Some guidelines for the Jersey Sum Investigation:
Injuries
Jalen Brunson is currently sidelined for a knee contusion, but his jersey will still factor into the Knicks’ total. Same with Joel Embiid and half of the Memphis Grizzlies.Lineup Inconsistencies
Darvin Ham has flirted with lineups that start Austin Reaves on the bench, but he is in their most occurring five-man lineup, and clearly one of their best players, so he makes the cut.Similarly, Eric Spoelstra has tried 20 different five-man lineups this season, and many of their players are of comparable caliber. Choosing between Caleb Martin, Duncan Robinson, Nikola Jovic, and Jaime Jacquez, Jr. comes down to judgment calls. But this is the hardest working, best conditioned, most professional, unselfish, toughest, meanest, nastiest newsletter. So, judgment calls I will make.
Trades
Spencer Dinwiddie was traded by Brooklyn and bought out by Toronto before he landed in LA last month. He won’t factor into Brooklyn’s sum, despite being a part of their two most frequently occurring five-man lineups.
NBA Teams Ranked by the Sums of Their Best Players’ Jersey Number, 2024
Oklahoma City Thunder | 25
Dort | 5, Giddey | 3, Gilgeous-Alexander | 2, Holmgren | 7, Williams | 8
Boston Celtics | 28
Brown | 7, Holiday | 4, Porzingis | 8, Tatum | 0, White | 9
Chicago Bulls | 34
Caruso | 6, DeRozan | 11, LaVine | 8, Vucevic | 9, White | 0
Charlotte Hornets | 39
Ball | 1, Bridges | 0, Martin | 11, Miller | 24, Richards | 4
Portland Trail Blazers | 40
Ayton | 2, Brogdon | 11, Grant | 9, Sharpe | 17, Simons | 1
New Orleans Pelicans | 40
Ingram | 14, Jones | 5, McCollum | 3, Valunciunas | 17, Williamson | 1
Los Angeles Lakers | 44
Davis | 3, James | 23, Prince | 12, Reaves | 15, Russell | 1
Houston Rockets | 56
Brooks | 9, Green | 4, Sengun | 28, Smith | 10, VanVleet | 5
Philadelphia 76ers | 57
Embiid | 21, Harris | 12, Hield | 17, Lowry | 7, Maxey | 0
Washington Wizards | 59
Avdija | 8, Coulibaly | 0, Jones | 5, Kuzma | 33, Poole | 13
Detroit Pistons | 64
Cunningham | 2, Duren | 0, Ivey | 23, Stewart | 28, Thompson | 9
Golden State Warriors | 66
Curry | 30, Green | 23, Kuminga | 00, Podziemski | 2, Thompson | 11
Orlando Magic | 66
Banchero | 5, Bitadze | 35, Black | 0, Suggs | 4, F. Wagner | 22
Phoenix Suns | 67
Allen | 8, Beal | 3, Booker | 1, Durant | 35, Nurkic | 20
Utah Jazz | 69
Clarkson | 00, Collins | 20, Kessler | 24, Markkanen | 23, Sexton | 2
Toronto Raptors | 70
Barnes | 4, Barrett | 9, Poeltl | 19, Quickley | 5, Trent, Jr. | 33
Los Angeles Clippers | 70
George | 13, Harden | 1, Leonard | 2, Mann | 14, Zubac | 40
San Antonio Spurs | 71
Johnson | 3, Jones | 33, Sochan | 10, Vassell | 24, Wembanyama | 1
Milwaukee Bucks | 72
Antetokounmpo | 34, Beasley | 5, Lillard | 0, Lopez | 11, Middleton | 22
Atlanta Hawks | 73
Bey | 41, Capela | 15, Johnson | 1, Murray | 5, Young | 11
New York Knicks | 75
Anunoby | 8, Brunson | 11, Hart | 3, Randle | 30, Robinson | 23
Minnesota Timberwolves | 77
Conley | 10, Edwards | 5, Gobert | 27, McDaniels | 3, Towns | 32
Sacramento Kings | 77
Barnes | 40, Fox | 5, Huerter | 9, Murray | 13, Sabonis | 10
Brooklyn Nets | 88
Bridges | 1, Claxton | 33, Finney-Smith | 28, Johnson | 2, Thomas | 24
Cleveland Cavaliers | 91
Allen | 31, Garland | 10, Mitchell | 45, Mobley | 4, Strus |1
Memphis Grizzlies | 93
Bane | 22, Jackson Jr. | 13, Kennard | 10, Morant | 12, Smart | 36
Denver Nuggets | 98
Caldwell-Pope | 5, Gordon | 50, Jokic | 15, Murray | 27, Porter, Jr. | 1
Indiana Pacers | 101
Halliburton | 0, Nembhard | 2, Nesmith | 23, Siakam | 43, Turner | 33
Miami Heat | 103
Adebayo | 13, Butler | 22, Jacquez, Jr. | 11, Robinson | 55, Rozier | 2
Dallas Mavericks | 170
Doncic | 77, Irving | 11, Jones | 55, Lively | 2, Washington | 25
The precocious Thunder find themselves atop the list! I’m disappointed that a) I was wrong, and b) my hometown Celtics find themselves in second place.
But there is a startling similarity between the teams with the lowest jersey sums.
Here is a list of every team in the league sorted by regular season win percentage as of March 9th, 2024.
Boston Celtics … Jersey Sum: 28 … Win %: 77.4
Oklahoma City Thunder … Jersey Sum: 25 … Win %: 69.8
Minnesota Timberwolves … Jersey Sum: 77… Win %: 68.8
Denver Nuggets … Jersey Sum: 98 … Win %: 68.3
Los Angeles Clippers … Jersey Sum: 70 … Win %: 65.6
Cleveland Cavaliers … Jersey Sum: 91 … Win %: 65.1
Milwaukee Bucks … Jersey Sum: 72 … Win %: 65.1
New Orleans Pelicans … Jersey Sum: 40 … Win %: 60.3
Phoenix Suns … Jersey Sum: 67 … Win %: 58.7
New York Knicks … Jersey Sum: 75 … Win %: 58.7
Sacramento Kings … Jersey Sum: 77 … Win %: 58.1
Orlando Magic … Jersey Sum: 66 … Win %: 57.8
Philadelphia 76ers … Jersey Sum: 57 … Win %: 55.6
Miami Heat … Jersey Sum: 103 … Win %: 55.6
Dallas Mavericks … Jersey Sum: 170 … Win %: 55.6
Los Angeles Lakers … Jersey Sum: 44 … Win %: 54.6
Indiana Pacers … Jersey Sum: 101 … Win %: 53.9
Golden State Warriors … Jersey Sum: 66 … Win %: 52.9
Chicago Bulls … Jersey Sum: 34 … Win %: 49.2
Atlanta Hawks … Jersey Sum: 73 … Win %: 46
Houston Rockets … Jersey Sum: 56 … Win %: 44.4
Utah Jazz … Jersey Sum: 69 … Win %: 44.4
Brooklyn Nets … Jersey Sum: 88 … Win %: 39.7
Toronto Raptors … Jersey Sum: 70 … Win %: 36.5
Memphis Grizzlies … Jersey Sum: 93 … Win %: 34.4
Portland Trail Blazers … Jersey Sum: 40 … Win %: 27.4
Charlotte Hornets … Jersey Sum: 39 … Win %: 23.8
San Antonio Spurs … Jersey Sum: 71 … Win %: 20.6
Detroit Pistons … Jersey Sum: 64 … Win %: 16.1
Washington Wizards … Jersey Sum: 59 … Win %: 15.9
There is no clear correlation between jersey sums and win percentage, but the top two teams in the league have the lowest combined jersey sums.
Is this an aberration? Here’s the breakdown going back to the end of the KD Warriors run.
We’re witnessing something special. If Boston and OKC find themselves in the Finals, that matchup might usher in a new era of NBA teams encouraging players to wear lower jersey numbers. Prospective rookies might boost their draft stock by wearing single digit numbers before they make the league? We may see teams utilizing the inexplicable difference between #0 and #00 to keep their sum low.*
Then again, such a phenomenon would make it harder to choose a new favorite player every year. And I still have no answer for Jokic, who will win his third MVP this year (no matter how little he wants it). So I guess I’m not sure what I’m rooting for. Both teams have fun? LeBron never retires?
*If a player can wear #00, why not #01, or #02? Could a team start players wearing #0, #00, #1, #01, and #2? A team like Washington might as well try it.