After years of waiting and hoping for a chance to make the Basketball Hall of Fame and to have his No. 21 jersey hanging in the rafters at Crypto.com Arena, five-time NBA champion and Los Angeles Lakers legend has finally gotten his wish. The storied franchise is set to retire his jersey on January 13, when the team hosts the San Antonio Spurs, during the upcoming 2024-25 NBA season.
Cooper has always been considered one of the Lakers greats of the past, most notably during the Showtime era while playing alongside Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but the inducted into the Hall of Famer is something that has alluded him until now.
With the Lakers brass having strict criteria for retiring jerseys of stars of the past, Cooper only needed to get the nod to be dubbed a Hall of Famer before Jeanie Buss and company could give the okay to have his jersey immortalized while joining the likes of his former teammates and other Lakers legends, like Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain and even broadcaster Chick Hearn.
After letting it all sink in, which will officially be remembered forever at Crypto.com Arena, Cooper went on his Showtime with Coop podcast to express how he feels about the honor and who he wishes would be in attendance on January 13.
“Kobe would be another one that I wish could be there because it’s kind of like he’s not here, but it’s the year 2024,” Cooper said. “That’s one of his jersey numbers, 24 and 8. I just think that’s something synonymous with the Lakers that’s happening with the young man who I had the chance to, I worked this kid out and I told everybody, Jerry and them said ‘What you think, Coop?’ I said, ‘He got it.’ So Kobe would be one that I wish that was there, I forget about him.”
Bryant most famously left his first impression on the Lakers franchise in a pre-draft workout in which then-general manager Jerry West brought in Cooper to play defense on this young kid right out of high school to see if he could handle playing against someone who was an elite defender during his prime with the team.
The workout became a legendary story. West and Cooper were blown away by what they saw from Bryant, leading the team to trade Vlade Divac to the Charlotte Hornets to acquire this kid out of Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia.
Bryant followed in Cooper’s footsteps, winning five NBA titles with the Lakers and becoming an elite defender in his own right. However, he took it a bit further, putting together an incredible career that many consider one of the greatest in league history.
Michael Cooper to Have Jersey Retired During 2024-25 NBA Season
The Los Angeles Lakers have announced that Michael Cooper’s No. 21 jersey will be retired when the team hosts Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs at Crypto.com Arena on January 13 during the upcoming 2024-25 NBA season.
It is a long-awaited honor for the Hall of Famer, who will join the likes of his former Showtime Lakers teammates and other legends who have played for the organization during its storied history.
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