Brand changes uniform number

Fifteen years of wearing No. 42 was enough for Elton Brand.

The veteran center is back for another season and will wear the No. 7.

Why?

“It was time to switch it up,” Brand said Monday. “After 15 years of playing it was a milestone. My mom and I were talking and it was time to let No. 42 go.”

Brand said he thought about different digits like Nos. 8 (don’t tell Shelvin Mack) and 22. In the end, he settled on a number that carries a lot of weight.

“Seven, it’s a pretty biblical number,” Brand said.