Lakers to honor Phil Jackson with statue outside Crypto.com Arena

LOS ANGELES (KESQ) - Former Lakers coach Phil Jackson will be honored with a statue outside Crypto.com Arena, the team announced Tuesday.  

The statue will be unveiled April 9, 2027, when the team hosts the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jackson, who will turn 81 later this month, won 11 championships as an NBA head coach, the most in history, including five with the Lakers.   

"Phil Jackson defines championship basketball for a reason,'' Lakers Governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement Tuesday. "His masterful approach to coaching brought out the best in some of the greatest athletes to ever play the game. After he accepted my dad's invitation to join the Lakers, Phil's unmatched creativity and commitment to excellence restored our championship legacy, bringing five titles and setting a standard of excellence for generations to come. It is a great joy to be able to mark that achievement with the statue he so richly deserves."

After winning six titles with a Chicago Bulls team led by Michael Jordan in the 1990s, Jackson joined the Lakers prior to the 1999-2000 season. The team had superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant but had yet to advance past the Western Conference Finals. Jackson and assistant coach Tex Winter's triangle offense paid immediate dividends, as the Lakers won the NBA championship in his first three seasons with the team.   

O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat after the 2003-04 season and the Lakers struggled for a few seasons before acquiring Pau Gasol and winning two more NBA titles in 2009 and 2010.  

Jackson stepped down from coaching after the 2010-11 season, and later served as president of the New York Knicks from 2014-17.   

The Montana native was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007 and was named one of the 15 greatest coaches in NBA history as part of the league's 75th anniversary celebration.   

Jackson will become the ninth member of the Lakers to be commemorated at Star Plaza, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Kobe Bryant, Chick Hearn, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Pat Riley and Jerry West.   

His statue will be designed and created by Omri Amrany of Rotblatt Amrany Studio.