LeBron James gives Anthony Davis the No. 23 jersey number with Lakers

LeBron James is gifting his No. 23 to former Kentucky Wildcats star and newest Laker Anthony Davis, according to Yahoo Sports.

Davis wore 23 at both Kentucky and with the New Orleans Pelicans, having plenty of success with the number. Now he will get the chance to wear it in gold and purple, as James will likely go back to the No. 6 jersey he wore as a member of the Miami Heat.

However, the jersey number may not have been for free. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski Davis waived his $4 million dollar trade kicker.

By doing that and sending a handful of players headlined by former first rounder Mo Wagner to the Wizards, the Lakers now have $32 million dollars in salary cap space that will allow them to sign a free agent to a max contract.

One can only speculate that the reason James gifted his legendary No. 23 is that Davis was willing to turn down the $4 million dollars to help the team in their pursuit of landing a Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard or Kemba Walker.