The Los Angeles Lakers announced that legendary head coach Pat Riley will be receiving a statue in Star Plaza outside of Crypto.com Arena. Riley is one of the greatest coaches in NBA history and was a mastermind behind the ‘Showtime’ era Lakers led by Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Those Lakers won five NBA Championships in the 1980s with Riley being an assistant coach on the first championship team and the head coach on the other four. The franchise would make eight NBA Finals appearances total in that decade with Riley becoming an icon during that time with his innovative coaching, not to mention his style off the court, regularly wearing Armani suits on the bench.
The ‘Showtime’ Lakers have always remained close and well connected through the years so it should be no surprise that Magic, Kareem, James Worthy and many others came together with owner Jeanie Buss to reveal to Riley that he would be honored with the statue, via Lakers on X:
"I'm just a kid from Schenectady, New York, and here I am going to have a statue with the Lakers."
Got some of the Showtime greats together to surprise Pat Riley with his statue announcement 🥹 pic.twitter.com/mpTBTIMYlr
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 20, 2024
That is truly a special moment and the emotions overtaking Riley are obvious. Even though he has long been synonymous with the Miami Heat and still serves as team president there, he will always have a connection with the Lakers and what he accomplished in L.A. As Buss noted, Riley will be involved throughout the process and making sure everything is done properly to represent him.
The ‘Showtime’ Lakers are one of the greatest dynasties in basketball history and Riley played a massive role in the success of that era, which really put the Lakers on the map as one of the premier franchises in all of sports.
Construction on the statue is expected to be finished in 2026, but no specific date for the unveiling has been announced.
Lakers legend Magic Johnson congratulates Pat Riley following statue announcement
Magic Johnson of course was one of many Lakers legends involved in the reveal to Pat Riley himself as the two have always maintained a close relationship over the years. And Magic would also take to social media to congratulate Riley on this honor as well.
Johnson called Riley the greatest coach in the history of the NBA, adding that all of the ‘Showtime’ Lakers players were excited to see this statue come to fruition.
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