Lakers honored the legendary coach Pat Riley with statue to be revealed on February 22nd
The statue will be presented to the public on Sunday 22 February on Star Plaza outside the Lakers’ Arena di Casa before the team of the team against the Boston Celtics, the team announced on Thursday.
The Lakers initially announced that a statue that honored Riley would be revealed at a certain point of 2026, but at the moment it did not have an exact date. Riley will be the eighth figure that will be so honored by the team, joining Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Chick Hearn and Elgin Baylor on the square.
During his mandate as head of the Lakers coach from 1981 to 1990, the Riley teams won four NBA championships. The Lakers won 50 or more games in each of his nine seasons on the sidelines, winning over 60 games in five of those seasons. He received coach honors of the NBA year in 1989-90 when the Lakers closed 63-19.
“Pat is a Lakers icon,” said the owner of the Lakers team Jeanie Buss in a declaration issued in November. “His professionalism, the commitment to his preparation for crafts and game has paved the way for coaching we see in the whole League today.
“My father recognized Pat’s obsession and ability to take talented players and to unite them in a championship team. The style of basketball Pat and Lakers created in the 80s is still the project for the organization today: a fun and winning team.”
Riley also became an iconic face of the “showtime” era which was probably the most successful in the history of the Lakers. The origins of that era were told in 2022-23 for a new generation of NBA fans in the dramatic series of HBO, “Winning Time”, based on the book “Showtime” by Jeff Pearlman 2014.
The Lakers had an aspra rivalry for the NBA supremacy with the Celtics in the 80s, which is certainly the reason why the ceremony will take place before hosting Boston on their home field.
The 533 wins of the regular season of Riley are the second most of the coaches of the franchise, behind the 610 victories of Phil Jackson. Overall, including victories in the playoffs, Riley won 635 games with the Lakers.
While “Winning Time” also reminded the fans, the story of Riley with the Lakers dates back to his mandate as head coach. He played for the team since 1970-75, with an average of 7.8 points per game as a shooting guard, and was the member of the 1971-72 Lakers team who won 33 consecutive games and an NBA title.
Riley was also assistant coach for three seasons under the head of the coach Paul Westhead, an arc that Lakers won two NBA championships.
Currently, Riley is the president of the team and a minority owner of Miami Heat. After leaving the Lakers after the 1989-90 season, he trained the New York Knicks for four seasons and another 11 seasons with the heat. He won an NBA title with Miami in 2006. With 1,210 wins as head of the NBA coach, Riley is in fifth place of all time in the history of the League.