For the first time in history, a woman athlete will have her own statue outside of the Staples Center.
Correct that – For the first time in HERstory, a woman athlete will have her own statue outside of the Staples Center.
Lisa Leslie is going to get a statue outside of Staples Center. The Sparks and AEG will talk about the specifics soon but it will be the 11th in Star Plaza and the first honoring a female athlete. It will be the first statue of a WNBA player outside the home arena of a WNBA team. pic.twitter.com/nw7YdDh30u
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) September 5, 2019
According to Arash Markazi of the Los Angeles Times, the Sparks will honor Leslie with said statue outside of its home arena. The report mentioned that the Sparks are still in conversations with Anschutz Entertainment Group about a specific date.
Another intriguing issue in the matter is that the Sparks’ lease with Staples Center is up after this year and that the statue will likely be part of those lease renewal talks.
Markazi’s report mentioned that the Sparks and AEG’s lease renewal talks could occur in a week or two and that AEG had already committed to helping the Sparks if the team wanted a Lisa Leslie statue.
We look forward to sitting down with Sparks ownership to negotiate a new lease for the 2020 WNBA season and beyond.
–Lee Zeidman, president of Staples Center, Microsoft Theater, LA Live (Los Angeles Times)
In addition, we plan to discuss the timing and placement of a permanent statue at Staples Center honoring one of the great all-time WNBA players, Lisa Leslie.
–Lee Zeidman, president of Staples Center, Microsoft Theater, LA Live (Los Angeles Times)
Between her eight All-Star selections, three WNBA MVPs, status as the W’s all-time leading rebounder, two championships, four Olympic gold medals,and being the first player to dunk in a WNBA game, a statue is more than deserved.
