Phil Jackson Is Getting a Statue in Star Plaza, Joining Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal Outside the Arena
The statue unveiling is scheduled for April 2027.
Summary
Los Angeles Lakers to honor Hall of Fame head coach Phil Jackson with a statue outside Crypto.com Arena in April 2027
Monument celebrates an 11-season tenure that delivered five NBA championships and a legendary three-peat
The Los Angeles Lakers officially announced on Tuesday that Phil Jackson will be honored with a statue in Star Plaza outside Crypto.com Arena. This unveiling ceremony is scheduled for April 9, 2027, taking place just before the Lakers face off against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Jackson is 80 years old and will become the ninth figure immortalized outside the arena. His physical legacy will be cemented alongside the franchise icons he once led.
The monument celebrates an era of dominance. Jackson originally arrived in Los Angeles after accepting an invitation from late Lakers owner Jerry Buss. He coached the Lakers for 11 seasons across two separate stints from 1999 to 2004 and 2005 to 2011. His tenure focused on championship execution. Under his watch, the Lakers compiled a 610-292 regular-season record and an equally lethal 118-63 run in the playoffs. Los Angeles reached the postseason in every one of his 11 seasons at the helm and advanced to the NBA Finals seven times. Jackson delivered five championships to Los Angeles, including three consecutive NBA titles from 2000 to 2002.
Before building his West Coast dynasty, Jackson was already a certified architect of basketball history, having secured six NBA titles as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007. In Star Plaza, his monument will join an exclusive club of eight figures: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant, Chick Hearn, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, Pat Riley and Jerry West. His most recent public appearances at Lakers games were to witness the statue unveilings for Bryant and O’Neal, the pillars of his inaugural Los Angeles three-peat. Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss, who is also Jackson’s former fiancee, provided the official quote in the press release regarding the new monument.
