Pat Riley will take his place among Lakers greats such as Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jerry West and Kobe Bryant Sunday when his statue is unveiled at Star Plaza outside Crypto.com Arena.
Riley, a scrappy player on the Lakers’ legendary 1971-72 team that won an NBA championship and authored a league-record 33-game winning streak, is better known as the coiffed, well-dressed coach of the 1980s “Showtime” team that won NBA titles in 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988.
The statue unveiling is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Sunday, a few hours before the Lakers take on the Boston Celtics. Riley’s coaching tenure was marked by the fierce rivalry between the Lakers and the Celtics, with the teams meeting in the NBA finals three times in the 1980s. Los Angeles won two of those matchups, suffering a bitter seven-game defeat in 1984.
Prior to assuming the head coach job, Riley served as a color commentator beside beloved Lakers play-by-play man Chick Hearn, then as an assistant coach under Paul Westhead. He got the top job when the Lakers fired Westhead early in the 1981-82 season.
Riley was the Lakers head coach from 1981-90. In addition to the four championships, he also guided the team to the NBA finals in 1983, 1984 and 1989.
Riley also coached the New York Knicks to the 1994 NBA finals, where they lost to the Houston Rockets in seven games.
He won a fifth NBA title as a head coach in 2006 with the Miami Heat. Riley coached the Heat from 1995 to 2003, and again from 2005-08. He’s been team president of the Heat since 2008.
The 80-year-old Riley is expected to attend Sunday’s unveiling. The Celtics-Lakers game will be televised on NBC4, and will stream on Peacock.
The other Lakers immortalized with statues in Star Plaza are Hearn, Elgin Baylor and Shaquille O’Neal.