Lakers to build larger-than-life statue of Shaquille O'Neal in front of Staples Center
Shaq will get a gigantic bronze statue outside of the Staples Center
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The statues of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wayne Gretzky, Chick Hearn, Oscar De La Hoya, Magic Johnson and Jerry West dot the surroundings of Staples Center in Los Angeles. With that many statues -- for space reasons -- it seems almost infeasible to add another one, yet that's exactly what the Los Angeles Lakers are doing. In order to avoid making things a little too cluttered outside of the arena, the Lakers are adding a statue will be suspended above the ground.
The Lakers announced Tuesday that they will officially unveil a statue of Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal outside of Staples Center on March 24. Like O'Neal, the statue will be massive and will be an engineering marvel as it hangs from 10 feet above the ground.
From the Lakers' release:
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.
The statue will culminate a banner year for O'Neal, as he was inducted into the Hall-of-Fame in September, and will have his jersey retired by the Miami Heat on Dec. 22.
