With NFL players being allowed to wear 0, here are my favorite athletes to don the number

Look at the NFL trying to be looser as an organization. First, it relaxed restrictions on player numbers in 2021, and the league has decided that in 2023 a forbidden number will be allowed. Certain players will be allowed to wear the No. 0.

During the NFL League meetings, new rules were agreed upon. One of which is that any player who is not an offensive or defensive lineman is eligible to wear that number. Calvin Ridley has already claimed it for his return to the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars following his one-year suspension.

Zero is a number commonly used in basketball. Many NBA players don it, as does LeBron James’ son, Bronny. While Bronny certainly has a pop-culture cache, he is not yet ready to be considered one of the greatest to ever have a No. 0 on his jersey — in my opinion.

My 10 favorite players to ever rock that number are a list of adults who are famous for their athletic feats, and a few for what they did out of uniform.

He was not one of the main rotation players for the 1995-98 Chicago Bulls.

He also might have been a snitch when he was an assistant coach — an allegation levied by Rip Hamilton that Brown denies.

But for those who had the privilege to live in the Chicagoland area at that time, he was certainly a memorable character.

Brown was a high-energy player, and when he wasn’t on the floor he was always enthusiastically cheering on his teammates.

He also showed up at my basketball camp in 1997, which makes him always good in my book.

He is certainly less athletic than he used to be, but in his prime, there were few players more fun to watch in the NBA. It was impossible to keep Westbrook out of the paint, and he attacked the rim as if it called him “Westbrick.”

He played basketball with such speed, explosion, and tenacity, that his presence on the floor in Oklahoma City overshadowed one of the greatest players in NBA history — Kevin Durant.

Maybe Westbrook should have deferred to Durant more often, but a lot of that falls on the design — or lack thereof — of Scott Brooks’ offense.

The only other player in the NBA who should be guarded the moment that he leaves the locker room. Lillard is great with the ball in his hands as well, but if Stephen Curry is the greatest shooter of all time, he has a strong case to be No. 2.

Lillard may never play in the NBA Finals, but that is fine. Many memorable athletes have never played on the biggest stage. Michael Vick and Dominique Wilkins were still fun to watch even though they never made championship-round appearances in their respective leagues. The same will go for Lillard if he never gets there.

No player has ever had his age mentioned more frequently in broadcasts and on sports television shows than Tatum. I get it. He was drafted in 2017 when he was 19 years old. He is not even close to 30 years old and has made deep playoff runs several times in his career.

While commentators bringing up his age will annoy me again come playoff time, what he has accomplished at such a young age is impossible. He dunked on LeBron James as a rookie. At 25 years old, Tatum is already an all-time great.

Kansas’ home winning streak ended during the 2016-17 season, but they still were a No. 1 seed in the tournament.

Josh Jackson may have been considered the top pro prospect on that team, and Devonte Graham’s professional career has been the best, but the player who carried the Jayhawks was Mason.

While Kansas lost in the Regional Final, Mason took home every possible top Men’s College Basketball honor.

He was a Consensus All-American and won both the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award.

The coolest baseball team of all time is arguably the Pittsburgh Pirates of the early 1970s.

They defeated the Baltimore Orioles for a World Series Championship in 1971 — Oliver’s fourth full season in the Majors.

However, most of Oliver’s individual accomplishments came when he left the Pirates and wore No. 0.

The outfielder/first baseman won three consecutive Silver Sluggers from 1980-83.

Two were while he played with the Texas Rangers and he won his final one with the Montreal Expos.

At Ohio State he was unstoppable. In his two collegiate seasons, he was a two-time Consensus All-American.

His wide body and shooting touch gave Ohio State a matchup advantage against the bigs of nearly every team that they faced even if he was under 6-foot-10.

During Sullinger’s time as a college player, Ohio State bowed out of the tournament twice with losses by only two points.

In 2011, the Buckeyes lost 62-60 to No. 11 seed Kentucky in the Sweet 16, and in 2012 Kansas beat them 64-62 in the Regional Final.

College Football first allowed players to wear No. 0 in the 2020 COVID season. Georgia has won two National Championships in a row. During this run you might have noticed a giant tight end wearing No. 0. That person is Washington.

At the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine, the Las Vegas native measured in at 6-foot-7, weighed 264 pounds, and ran a 4.64 in the 40-yard dash.

He still needs some professional coaching to maximize natural gifts, but just seeing him stand on a field with other college football players was startling.

He was a great player at Ohio State. The Los Angeles Lakers drafting him No. 2 overall in 2015 made complete sense. However, his play is not why he is one of the most memorable players to wear No. 0.

When he filmed evidence that Nick Young was allegedly cheating on Iggy Azalea, his teammates would have hated him less if he had sucker-punched Magic Johnson. The situation was so untenable that prior to his third season, he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Six years later Russell is back with the Lakers, but his violation of the bro code will never be forgotten.

He is referred to as Agent Zero, the most recognizable face to ever wear that number. Not only was Arenas an all-star caliber NBA player, but he was also one of the first bloggers to gain a following. His NBA.com blog from 2006-2009 was read far and wide.

If helping to spur an industry wasn’t enough, he was also involved in one of the most infamous incidents in the history of the NBA when he brought guns to the Washington Wizards locker room.

He was an outstanding player even if those mid-aughts Wizards were hard to watch, but his play was far from the only reason that he is the true Agent Zero.