Former Los Angeles Lakers great, Shaquille O’Neal, will be honored with a statue outside the Staples Center on Friday March 24, 2017. As a tribute to the larger-than-life Laker great, whose career with the organization produced three NBA Championships, the Los Angeles Lakers, Staples Center, and AEG organizations commissioned the creation of a 1,200 pound, nine-foot bronze statue of the NBA Hall of Fame member. O’Neal’s statue will be connected to Staples Center, suspended 10 feet above the ground, at Star Plaza.
O’Neal was a member of the Lakers from 1996-2004, leading the team to three consecutive NBA Championships from 2000-2002, winning the NBA Finals MVP award each time. A seven-time All-Star for the Purple & Gold, O’Neal was also named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2000. The statue, created by renowned sculptors/artists Julie Rotblatt Amrany and Omri Amrany, will join other iconic sculptures of celebrated sports superstars Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wayne Gretzky, Chick Hearn, Oscar De La Hoya, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and Jerry West. Abdul-Jabbar’s statue (dedicated November 16, 2012), Johnson’s statue (dedicated February 11, 2004), Hearn’s statue (dedicated April 20, 2010), and West’s statue (dedicated February 17, 2011) were also created by Julie Rotblatt Amrany and Omri Amrany.
The ceremony, which is open and free to the public, will be highlighted by speeches from Shaquille O’Neal, his teammates, colleagues and friends from his unprecedented career, and will conclude with a spectacular unveiling of the statue.
