The number zero has the aura of being a unique number that, at some points in history, were unreachable for athletes across different professional sports leagues. Although the National Basketball Association has never banned the number, the looming “curse” of top-tier franchise star-level athletes tearing their Achilles tendon in the NBA finals, recent critics have been calling for the number to become unavailable for athletes to wear. And honestly, I do not think the numbers should be banned, however athletes should take a second to acknowledge the fact that this trend is becoming uncanny before choosing to wear a zero on their back.
I remember sitting on my couch, watching the Milwaukee Bucks play the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the playoffs in 2025, and feeling my stomach churn as I watched the Bucks star, Damian Lillard, rupture his Achilles tendon on a non-contact play. Lillard, who has always worn the number zero to represent the letter “O” for his journey of living in Oakland, going to Ogden Weber State college and Oregon, where he started his NBA career, was the first NBA player with a zero on the back of his jersey to deal with this excruciating injury in the 2025 playoffs. This incident seemed innocent; any player could tear their Achilles and no one, at least me, thought twice about his jersey number being a factor.
Just a month later, the Boston Celtics phenom, and arguably one of the best players in the league, Jayson Tatum, tore his right Achilles tendon during the second round of playoffs against the New York Knicks. Tatum’s face as soon as he felt the pain shattered my heart into pieces; rising to the prime of his career and then having it cut short because of a significant injury was something that struck him hard. The emotions were written all over his face. So, it must just be a coincidence that these two star players, who both happen to wear the number zero, tore their Achilles’s in the playoffs on their respective teams. Not enough to spark my attention or pique my interest in that these two had unfortunately suffered this season-ending injury, whilst wearing zero.
What made me think that there was something out of the ordinary was when Indiana Pacers star, Tyrese Haliburton, tore his Achilles during the last game of the NBA 2025 season in the highly anticipated game seven of the NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Similar to Tatum, Haliburton is an integral part of their respective teams and his injury played a consequential role in them losing, and the Thunder ultimately becoming the 2025 NBA champs. Now, in the 2025 NBA playoffs, three of the league’s most prominent players have torn their Achilles, and they all happen to wear the number zero. This domino effect for the athletes has made a significant impact on the sports world, with so many people questioning why this was such a problem for the athletes this year.
With a fresh start, fans who had been paying attention to the uncanny events that had happened in 2025, felt that there was no way that the trend would continue into the 2026 playoff season— myself included.
But little did I know that in the first round of the Minnesota Timberwolves playing the Denver Nuggets, shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo tore his Achilles. And yes, Divincenzo wears the number zero. This furthered my idea about the curse of zero; the theory that only players who wear zero suffered from Achilles tendons, or at least substantially more than players who do not wear this seemingly haunted number. So maybe it is a coincidence, but honestly I feel like players should have a deep reflection and take a second thought before they choose zero.
