Lakers unveil statue of legendary former coach Pat Riley

LOS ANGELES — Legendary Lakers coach Pat Riley was honored with a statue outside Crypto.com Arena on Sunday and the nearly 8-foot tall, 510-pound bronze rendering features the famously stylish Riley in his preferred attire: a Giorgio Armani suit.

The Hall of Fame coach, who is currently the Miami Heat’s team president and last roamed the sidelines in 2008 after 24 seasons with L.A., the New York Knicks and the Heat, said he would still be wearing suits if he were coaching today.

“I wish it went back to coat and ties,” Riley said of the NBA coaches’ current dress code of team-issued polos, quarter-zips and sweaters. “I think an audience wants to see somebody on the sidelines who looks like a leader, dresses like a leader, acts like a leader.”

The league adopted the casual wardrobe during the 2020 bubble and has not changed back, with the NBA Coaches Association voting to keep the relaxed look.

The statue, depicting Riley holding up his right fist high in the air — the “Showtime” Lakers’ signal to have Magic Johnson pass the ball to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for his signature skyhook throughout the 1980s — immortalized his fashion sense with the coach in not only an Armani suit, but also a crocodile leather belt.

And the guests on hand for the statue’s unveiling before the Lakers hosted the Boston Celtics showed Riley’s icon status extended beyond the hardwood.

Seated on the dais along with Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar, Dwyane Wade and Lakers acting owner Jeanie Buss was acclaimed actor Michael Douglas, who revealed the slick-backed hairdo he wore to play Gordon Gekko in the movie “Wall Street” was inspired by Riley.

“I was with Pat, we went to Miami, we were driving in his red Mercury, a convertible with the top down,” Douglas said. “I was sitting in the backseat, I was looking at Pat driving and I said, ‘His hair’s not moving! This is a convertible!’ and so I said that’s the way I wanted to go [for Gekko].”

Riley coached the Lakers from 1981 to 1990 and won four championships in 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988 — the last coming after he famously guaranteed a repeat title at the ’87 championship parade.

He is the eighth Laker with a statue on Star Plaza, joining Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant, Chick Hearn, Shaquille O’Neal, Jerry West, Johnson and Abdul-Jabbar.

“I don’t know how I got here, but I got here and now there’s a statue out there,” Riley said. “And I’m so grateful. I really am. It’s beyond gratitude. I’m so grateful to be honored and to be with those who are the giants that I jumped up on their shoulders and they carried me. They did it. And here I’m today.”

The base of the statue includes an inscription: “There will come a time when you are challenged, and when that time comes, you must plant your feet. You must stand firm. You must make a point. About who you are, what you do, and where you come from. When that time comes, you do it.”

Riley also spoke about a couple of current Lakers in LeBron James and JJ Redick during a pregame news conference.

He recruited James to play for the Heat, teaming up with Wade and Chris Bosh in 2010.

“I thought getting the big three — Dwyane, Chris Bosh and especially LeBron — that we had finally put together what I thought could become a dynasty,” Riley said. “It was, I mean, four trips to the Finals in a row, two world championships was an incredible run. And, as a coach and as somebody who really thought about how to build that particular team and who built it, I saw something that could have lasted eight to 10 years. But I understood … the business in the NBA is the business in the NBA and players have an opportunity to go somewhere else. And he went to Cleveland and he won a title up there. So, I wish him nothing but the best. But I’m going to be selfish here and say, I wish I had him for another six or eight years. Would’ve been great, but we’ll never know.”

Riley, the 13th coach in Lakers history, also endorsed Redick, who is the 32nd.

“I love JJ, I really do,” Riley said. “He’s a fiery guy. He could shoot the hell out of the ball. He was tough as nails. … Sometimes I look back and I remember myself at that time and I look at JJ and I think they picked the right person. There’s just a quality about him I think that goes above and beyond. And they have a hell of a team for him right here, right now with [Luka] Dončić and [Austin] Reaves and obviously with LeBron. And so, I think Rob [Pelinka] will continue with the new ownership to build that team and to complement those players. But they have a great opportunity, and I think JJ will be a great coach for it.”