LeBron Will Wear #23 For Lakers; Jersey Pre-Orders, Ticket Prices Skyrocket
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA/CBS SPORTS) - King James will wear number 23 when he dons the purple and gold this fall.
According to ESPN, LeBron James' jersey number will be the same as he wore in both stints with Cleveland, an announcement that came hours after word came down that James will sign a four-year, $154 million deal with the Lakers.
News that James will don No. 23 pushed jersey sales on retail site Fanatics to one of its bestselling days ever Sunday night, a spokesman told ESPN.
Within three hours of going on sale, James' Lakers jersey - which goes for about $220 - saw a 600 percent jump compared to when he returned to Cleveland for the second time in July 2014.
Fans in Ohio, meanwhile, are looking to move forward: James' jersey sales have plunged by 40 percent in the Cavs' team shop at Quicken Loans Arena.
CBSLA's Jo Kwon visited the Lakers Team Shop in El Segundo where fans were on the hunt for Kings James merchandise.
Jorge Magaña was hoping that James would be there but said he would settle for a jersey instead.
"I thought they would have them, but I'll have to wait a little bit," said Magaña.
The only way you can get a LeBron Lakers jersey right now is by pre-ordering it on lakersstore.com. The only thing you will find in El Segundo with "James" on it is a jersey from the All-Star Game.
"I would probably pay like at most like $200," said a fan.
LeBron coming to L.A. has also sent Laker ticket prices soaring: the cheapest season ticket prices went from $3,500 to $5,800 in a matter of hours. According to StubHub, tickets to the Lakers home opener start at $545. Tickets to last year's home opener started at sixty bucks.
"I'm sure it will cost a good penny, but we have to experience one game," said life-long Lakers fan Jason Turner.
His wife says she's not surprised her husband showed up to work at Super Sports in Manhattan Beach all decked out.
"He said 'I'm going to be wearing Lakers gear for the next few days, definitely,' " said Emily Turner.
"As you can see, I'm head to toe," said Jason.
So are his kids and they all happen to be sporting number 23 not for the King but for dad's favorite - Michael Jordan. Cadence says he's sporting number 23 now for his favorite new Laker LeBron James.
"He inspired me, like on the basketball court. Just don't be a ball hog. Keep hustling. Never give up," said Cadence.
One of the first Lakers to talk to James following the announcement was none other than legend Kobe Bryant, who told CBS2's Jim Hill his relationship to James is more like an older brother rather than a rival.
"Yeah, we played against each other, we had a window there where we could've faced other in the Finals, but it's a huge generation gap," Bryant said. "It's not like we were really direct competitors.
"But even if we were, you know the Lakers...once you retire, you become all about the organization, and the next player that is in that jersey...the players who come before have a responsibility to help them win more championships."