Phil Jackson is about to take his place among the Lakers’ immortals.
The team announced Tuesday that Jackson will be honored with a statue outside Crypto.com Arena in Star Plaza, making him the ninth figure in franchise history to receive that distinction. The unveiling is set for April 9, 2027, before the Lakers host the Minnesota Timberwolves and Anthony Edwards.
“The Lakers announce that Phil Jackson, aka The Zen Master, will be getting a statue outside of Crypto pic.twitter.com/0VdcAryTtB”
Jackson arrives in that company with a resume that was already carved into NBA history before he ever reached Los Angeles. By the time he joined the Lakers in the summer of 1999, he had already won six titles as the head coach of Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls.
There was real uncertainty about whether Jackson would coach again after Chicago. He had already accomplished more than most coaches ever dream of. But the opportunity to guide Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal pulled him back in, and the move paid off with five more championships.
That run helped cement Jackson’s place as one of the greatest head coaches the league has ever seen, and the Lakers are now putting that legacy in bronze.
Former fiancée and longtime Lakers governor Jeanie Buss also spoke about Jackson in the team’s announcement on Tuesday.
Jackson follows Pat Riley, who became the latest Lakers figure to be immortalized with a statue earlier this year, before the team hosted the Boston Celtics. Riley won a title with the Lakers as a player and later guided the Magic Johnson-led Showtime Lakers to four championships in the 1980s.
With Jackson’s unveiling scheduled, he will join Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Chick Hearn, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and Riley outside the arena.
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