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dave mcmenamin
multiple authors
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 statue depicts the famously stylish Riley in his favorite outfit: a Giorgio Armani suit.
Hall of Fame coaches who are currently Miami HeatThe team president and last coach was sidelined in 2008 after 24 seasons with LA. new York Knicks And Heat said if he were coaching today he would still be wearing a suit.
“I want it to get back to coat and tie,” Riley said of NBA coaches’ current dress code of team-issued polos, quarter-zips and sweaters. “I think audiences want to see someone on the sidelines who looks like a leader, dresses like a leader, acts like a leader.”
The league adopted a casual wardrobe during the 2020 bubble and there were no changes, with the NBA Coaches Association voting to maintain the casual look.
The statue, which depicts Riley raising his right fist in the air – the “Showtime” allusion to the Lakers watching Magic Johnson pass the ball to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for his signature skyhook in the 1980s – immortalized his fashion sense with the coach in not only an Armani suit, but also an alligator leather belt.
And guests were on hand for the statue’s unveiling before the Lakers hosted boston celtics Showed that Riley’s icon status extends beyond the hardwood.
Sitting on stage with Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar, Dwyane Wade and Lakers acting owner Jenny Buss was acclaimed actor Michael Douglas, who revealed that the slicked-back hairstyle he wore to play Gordon Gekko in the movie “Wall Street” was inspired by Riley.
Douglas said, “I was with Pat, we went to Miami, we were driving around in his red Mercury, a convertible with the top down.” “I was sitting in the back seat, I was watching Pat driving and I said, ‘His hair isn’t moving! It’s a convertible!’ And so I said that’s the path 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 time they were guaranteed a repeat title in the ’87 championship parade.
He is the eighth Laker to have a statue placed 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 there,” Riley said. “And I’m so grateful. I really am. It’s beyond grateful. I’m so grateful to be honored and to be with people who are such giants that I climbed on their shoulders and they lifted me up. They did that. And I’m here today.”
An inscription at the base of the statue includes: “There will come a time when you will be challenged, and when that time comes, you must find your feet. You must stand firm. You must make a point. Who you are, what you do, and where you come from. When that time comes, you do this.”
Riley also talked about some current Lakers Lebron James and JJ Redick during a pregame news conference.
He recruited James to play for the Heat in 2010, along with Wade and Chris Bosh.
Riley said, “I thought that by combining the big three – Dwayne, Chris Bosh and especially LeBron – we finally put together what I thought could become a dynasty.” “I mean, four consecutive trips to the Finals, two world championships was an incredible run. And, as a coach and as someone who really thought about building that particular team and who built it, I saw something that could have lasted eight to 10 years. But I understood… business in the NBA is business in the NBA and players have an opportunity to go elsewhere. And he went to Cleveland and he won a title there. So, I wish him nothing but the best. I do. But I’m going to be selfish here and say, I wish I had him for the next six or eight years, but we’ll never know.”
Riley, the 13th coach in Lakers history, also endorsed Redick, the 32nd coach.
“I love JJ, I really do,” Riley said. “He’s a fierce guy. He can shoot the ball all the way. He was tough as nails. …Sometimes I look back and I think back to that time and I look at JJ and I think they picked the right guy. I think there’s just a quality about him that goes above and beyond. And they have a great team for him right here, right now.” [Luka] donjic and [Austin] With Reeves and obviously LeBron. And so, I think Rob [Pelinka] That will continue with the new ownership to build that team and complement those players. But he has a great opportunity and I think JJ will be a great coach for it.”
