On Monday, November 18, the organization announced it has commissioned a statue of Riley that is set to be completed in 2026. Riley will be the eighth Laker icon to be honored in the arena's Star Plaza, joining statues of Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant, Chick Hearn, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Jerry West.
Riley won six championships with the Lakers — four as a head coach, one as an assistant coach, and one as a player.
"Pat is a Lakers icon," Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said in a statement. "His professionalism, commitment to his craft, and game preparation paved the way for the coaching we see across the league today. My dad recognized Pat's obsession and ability to take talented players and coalesce them into a championship team. The style of basketball Pat and the Lakers created in the '80s is still the blueprint for the organization today: an entertaining and winning team."
The announcement comes mere weeks after Riley's current team unveiled its own statue in honor of NBA Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade — which instantly became the laughingstock of the internet and sports world as fans saw resemblances to everyone from Laurence Fishburne in The Matrix to the Tin Man from The Wiz to a Darkseeker from I Am Legend. The Atlantic's Ross Anderson dubbed it "The Worst Statue in the History of Sports," besting (or is that worsting?) the infamous Cristiano Ronaldo bust.
"The statue gives him the thick, grizzled look of a man in his mid-50s," Anderson writes. "He seems to suffer from a rare elephantiasis, hyperlocal to the jaw. The eyes are all wrong. If Wade ever had to flee the country, and for some reason, the detectives who pursued him overseas had only a cast of this statue to identify him, he would likely remain at large forever."
Still haunted by the Wade unveil, New Times' immediate thought was: Who will bring Pat Riley to life in bronze form?
And, a split-second later: Will it be Omri Amrany and Oscar León, the team behind the likeness that has been seen and roasted around the world?
Hey, it's not like we're going all that far out on a limb.
Rotblatt Amrany Studio of Chicago has already crafted statues of five of the aforementioned Lakers, plus more than a Mount Rushmore's worth of sports icons, including Michael Jordan, David Beckham, Vince Lombardi, Gordie Howe, and Ken Griffey Jr.
New Times was not alone in our thought.
"Will they be using Wade sculptors?" a perceptive and quite handsome individual who goes by @REOSuperFan asked on the platform formerly known as Twitter.
"Hope Pat Riley's statue is as good as Dwyane Wade's," another tweeter chimed in.Will they be using Wade's sculptors?
— DavidC (@REOSuperFan) November 18, 2024
Another cut straight to the quick: "Mark your calendars, the Dwyane Wade statue's 'worst likeness ever' reign comes to an end in 2026."Hope Pat Riley’s statue is as good as Dwyane Wade’s. pic.twitter.com/80CVXDOSZf
— PHX Fans (@PHXFansAZ) November 18, 2024
Given everyone's eagerness to learn whether the Rotblatt Amrany Studio will be creating the Riley statue, we took one for the team and gave the studio a ring.mark your calendars, the dwayne wade statue's "worst likeness ever" reign comes to an end in 2026 https://t.co/1gprvIoB5b
— rthr (@rxckrxdxscxlvxs) November 18, 2024
We posed our question. "I am not at liberty to disclose," our interlocutor responded.
As professional journalists, we'd never so much as imply that she answered our question. But it kind of felt like she answered our question, if you know what we mean.
At any rate, and just to be on the safe side: Sorry in advance, sports fans.
