A retired number should mean something. It should mean a Hall of Famer, or a player so important to a franchise that nobody else should ever wear his number again. Lately, NBA teams hand them out for being a good teammate for a long time. These six banners are the ones we would take down.
This is my list, built from the players I actually watched. Every one of them was a real player, and most were fan favorites. None of them belongs in the rafters. Tell us we're wrong.
Quick Answers
- Which NBA retired numbers shouldn't be retired? Our six: Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Cavaliers No. 11), Tony Allen (Grizzlies No. 9), Nick Collison (Thunder No. 4), Shawn Marion (Suns No. 31), Andre Iguodala (Warriors No. 9) and Muggsy Bogues (Hornets No. 1).
- Are any of them in the Hall of Fame? No. None of the six has been inducted as a player.
- What is our standard? Hall of Famers, plus the rare player who truly changed a franchise. A long, likable career is not enough.
- What is the newest one? Muggsy Bogues. Charlotte announced it on October 27, 2026, and the ceremony is February 11, 2027. Full story here.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Cavaliers No. 11
Photo: Erik Drost / CC BY 2.0
Career by the numbers
Retired: March 8, 2014. That is the real banner above, hanging next to Larry Nance, Mark Price and Brad Daugherty. The case for it: two All-Star games (2003 and 2005), 13 seasons in Cleveland, and the starting center on the 2007 team that reached the NBA Finals. He played through foot injuries that nearly ended his career before it started, and Cleveland loves him for it.
Why it shouldn't be up there: two All-Star games and 13.0 points a game for his career is a very good player, not a rafters player. No title, no All-NBA team, and the Finals run is remembered as LeBron's. Ilgauskas does not deserve it.
Tony Allen, Grizzlies No. 9
Career by the numbers
Retired: March 15, 2025. The case for it: the Grindfather was the heart of Grit and Grind, a three-time All-Defensive First Team pick and one of the best perimeter defenders of his era.
Why it shouldn't be up there: I understand why Memphis did it. It wanted the whole core in the rafters: Allen, Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph and eventually Mike Conley. But that core never won a championship and never even reached the Finals. Its best run ended in the 2013 Western Conference finals. Allen averaged 8.1 points a game for his career and never made an All-Star team. Putting Tony Allen up there is like putting Andre Iguodala up for the Warriors. It is just a bit much.
Nick Collison, Thunder No. 4
Career by the numbers
Retired: March 20, 2019, the first number the Thunder ever retired. The case for it: Collison played his whole career for one franchise, from the Seattle SuperSonics through the move to Oklahoma City, and was the glue guy behind the Durant and Westbrook years.
Why it shouldn't be up there: this one is definitely over the top. Collison was never an All-Star and never did anything special on the court: 5.9 points a game for his career. He was the foundational piece of the team moving to Oklahoma City, and that is a front-office story, not a rafters story. The franchise that later had Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and an MVP in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander chose Nick Collison as its first retired number.
Shawn Marion, Suns No. 31
Career by the numbers
Retired: December 2023, alongside Amar'e Stoudemire's No. 32. The case for it: four All-Star games with Phoenix (2003 and 2005 to 2007), two All-NBA Third Team picks, the Matrix in the Seven Seconds or Less offense, and 15.2 points a game for his career. He did win a title, in 2011, but with Dallas.
Why it shouldn't be up there: Shawn Marion being retired by the Suns is crazy. He was a great piece in a great system, but he's not good enough. No Phoenix title, no Phoenix Finals, and the system everyone remembers was Steve Nash's.
Andre Iguodala, Warriors No. 9
Career by the numbers
Retired: February 23, 2025. The case for it: four championships with Golden State and the 2015 Finals MVP, the award that turned a sixth man into a franchise legend.
Why it shouldn't be up there: one All-Star game, and it came in Philadelphia. Iguodala was a great role player on a dynasty built around Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. Championships with a dynasty are not the same as carrying one. This is the banner that made me start this list.
Muggsy Bogues, Hornets No. 1
Career by the numbers
Retiring: February 11, 2027, at halftime against the Bucks. The case for it: the shortest player in NBA history at 5-foot-3, 10 seasons in Charlotte and a beloved part of the original teal-and-purple Hornets.
Why it shouldn't be up there: a great story is not a rafters résumé. Bogues was never an All-Star. We made the full case, and named the player Charlotte should have honored first, in our Muggsy Bogues jersey retirement story.
Why the NBA Hands Out Too Many
Retired numbers used to be rare. Now teams use them as a thank-you card: for loyalty, for a beloved era, for moving with the franchise. The cost is real. Every banner takes a number out of circulation forever, and every new one makes the old ones mean a little less. Save the rafters for the players who earned them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which NBA team retired Nick Collison's number?
The Oklahoma City Thunder retired his No. 4 on March 20, 2019. It was the first number the franchise retired after moving from Seattle.
When did the Grizzlies retire Tony Allen's jersey?
March 15, 2025, after a home game against the Miami Heat. His No. 9 joined Zach Randolph's No. 50 and Marc Gasol's No. 33.
When did the Warriors retire Andre Iguodala's number?
February 23, 2025, before a game against the Dallas Mavericks.
When did the Suns retire Shawn Marion's jersey?
In December 2023, the same season Phoenix retired Amar'e Stoudemire's No. 32.
When did the Cavaliers retire Zydrunas Ilgauskas' number?
March 8, 2014, at halftime of a home game. He was the seventh player in team history to have his number retired.
Are any of these players in the Hall of Fame?
No. None of the six has been inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as a player.
Who decides when a team retires a number?
The team does. There is no league rule or standard, which is exactly why the list keeps getting longer.
Retirement dates via the teams and ESPN. Career statistics and honors via NBA.com and Basketball-Reference. Embedded posts are the teams' own. The Ilgauskas banner photo is via Wikimedia Commons under the license credited. Cover banner art is ColorWay Sports' own illustration, not the teams' banners.
