LA Sports: Top five uniform numbers in Los Angeles history
By Jamaal Artis
3. Number 34
The number 34 belongs to some giants in LA sports, one wearer created a mania, one was probably the greatest pure athlete to carry a football, and the other was literally a giant who made the Staples Center the place to be seen.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have yet to retire Fernando Valenzuela’s number 34, but the team still refuses to issue it to another player. That goes to show you the impact that Valenzuela’s presence and pitching had on the Dodgers. Starting with Fernandomania in 1981 until 1990 the Dodgers presence in the Latin community of Los Angeles increased exponentially.
In the late 80s, Bo Jackson carried the football for the Los Angeles Raiders and captured the imagination of Angelenos with his athleticism and power. Jackson’s most memorable performance was a Monday Night Football game against the Seattle Seahawks where he ran for 221 yards including a 91-yard touchdown run.
From the time Shaquille O’Neal first put on the number 34 for the Lakers until he was traded away in 2004, his outsized personality was matched by his outsized game. O’Neal won three straight NBA titles starting in 2000, and along with his regular season MVP, O’Neal was named the MVP of three straight NBA Finals.
His 34 is now in the rafters of the Staples Center among the other Lakers greats, just as GM Jerry West predicted when he signed him in 1997.