The Los Angeles Sparks announced Thursday that the franchise will immortalize Hall of Famer Lisa Leslie with a bronze statue outside Crypto.com Arena, giving one of the city’s defining basketball stars a permanent home address in Star Plaza. The dedication is set for Sept. 20 and will take place ahead of the Sparks' home game against the Portland Fire, a pregame show that is going to be hard to top.
What the team announced
In a press release, the team said sculptors Julie Rotblatt Amrany and Omri Amrany will create the bronze, and the unveiling will include programming and fan opportunities, according to Los Angeles Sparks. Leslie said, "To be cemented in Los Angeles, the city that raised me, I couldn’t be more proud." Earvin "Magic" Johnson, an owner in the Sparks' ownership group, called her "a pioneer, a cultural icon and a force who elevated women’s basketball to new heights."
Leslie's legacy in numbers
Leslie spent her entire 12-year WNBA career with the Sparks and was a cornerstone of the franchise's back-to-back titles in 2001 and 2002, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle. She remains the Sparks' career leader in points, rebounds and blocks and is an eight-time All-Star, a three-time WNBA MVP and a four-time Olympic gold medalist. Her No. 9 jersey was retired by the team in 2010, the Chronicle notes, setting the stage for this next, more literal, piece of permanent recognition.
Star Plaza and where she'll stand
The statue will be placed in Star Plaza, the arena's public promenade that already features more than a dozen bronze figures honoring Los Angeles sports figures. The plaza includes statues of Magic Johnson, Wayne Gretzky and Kobe Bryant, among others, per the arena listing on Crypto.com Arena. Dropping Leslie into that lineup underscores just how firmly she belongs in the city’s top sports tier.
A milestone for women's sports
Leslie becomes just the second WNBA player to be immortalized by her franchise; Seattle's Sue Bird was the first when the Storm unveiled a statue in August 2025, per Bleacher Report. The Bird statue was created by the Rotblatt Amrany studio, which has been credited on the Sparks' announcement. Bird's tribute set a recent precedent for WNBA recognition at the arena level, and Leslie’s honor pushes that slow-moving trend a little further down the court.
What to expect at the unveiling
The Sparks said details on timing, programming and fan opportunities will be released in the weeks ahead, according to Los Angeles Sparks. The move also answers a years-long push, noted in earlier coverage by the Los Angeles Times, to give Leslie a permanent place among L.A.'s sports icons. For Sparks fans, it is a long-awaited win that will not be coming off the books anytime soon.
