With Magic Johnson by his side, Pat Riley won four championships with the Lakers during the 1980s.
There are important details that must be addressed by the brave sculptor who molds the statue to honor the most profound coach in the history of the Los Angeles Lakers:
The hair must be plush and slicked back, with nary a wayward strand.
The shirt collar, comfortable and curled and white, needs to reflect how crispy and starched it always seemed around his neck.
The suit must be copied from the works of Giorgio Armani, being respectful of the stitching and the slim cut.
Finally, and this is important: Pat Riley must stand tall and appear charismatic, because that’s how he was defined in his nine years near the Lakers’ bench.
Riley will be immortalized in bronze Sunday when his statue joins that of other influential figures who helped create the culture of one of the NBA’s most successful franchises. It is quite appropriate that Riley join Chick Hearn and Kobe Bryant and Magic Johnson and Jerry West and Shaquille O’Neal, among others, and become the first coach to do so, because of the footprint he left (in designer shoes, of course).
Riley was the director of Showtime, and for those who were born too late and missed the fun, he was a combination of smarts and sharp dressing, the coolest coach in the room and very often the best prepared.
Riley was among the league’s first “players’ coaches” meaning, he could relate to and connect with those he steered. And his beginnings were peculiar. Riley was a role player on the Lakers’ 1971-72 championship team, then later became the team’s commentator who sat next to Hearn.
When the Lakers needed a coach barely weeks into the 1981-82 season, the initial choice was West, who demurred and instead suggested Riley, who served as an assistant coach for the previous year and a half. It was a pivotal moment, because West then became a keen team builder and set the standard for general managers, while Riley soared from his very first year as coach and never looked back.
Riley won four championships with the Lakers (they reached the NBA Finals seven times) and helped usher a significant phase of basketball for the NBA during the ‘80s, just when the league saw its popularity expand. As he navigated these game-changing times, Riley never seemed to sweat — even when Boston Celtics boss Red Auerbach slyly turned up the heat in the visitor’s locker room at the Boston Garden during the June NBA Finals when Lakers-Celtics clashes were common.
So, no, there will be no perspiration carved on the forehead of the Riley Statue when it is unveiled; this detail we know.
His teams reflected the lifestyle of Los Angeles at the time, playing freely and breezily, always looking to sashay whenever possible. This up-tempo personality, helped by Magic at the controls, created Showtime and the Lakers were big box office not only at the Forum, but around the league.
That said, Riley preached defense and also uttered the phrase “no rebounds, no rings.”
His 1987 team won 65 games in the regular season and dispatched the Celtics in six games for the title, his third. Riley then increased the intensity around the Lakers to keep them from becoming complacent; he promised at the championship parade that they would repeat as champs the following season, a risky act of bravado. They became the first team in 18 years to do so when they beat the Detroit Pistons in seven games.
The Lakers didn’t make it three straight, but Riley did trademark the term “threepeat.”
He subsequently won another championship with the Miami Heat and reached the NBA Finals with the New York Knicks but, as a coach, Riley is most connected to the Lakers.
This Sunday the entrance outside of Crypto Arena will be complete, then. All that was missing until now was a statue of the person who drew up the plays, who fueled the most entertaining brand of basketball in league history, and who looked fabulous while doing so.
Riley will stand tall just beyond the front door. And it’s no coincidence that the ceremony will take place prior to a game against the Celtics (6:30 ET on Peacock & NBC).
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA since 1985. You can e-mail him at spowell@nba.com, find his archive here and follow him on X.
