Lenny Wilkens, the legendary former SuperSonics player, coach and executive, was honored as the first person to have a statue unveiled outside Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

On Saturday, the former Seattle SuperSonics player and coach became the first person to have a statue unveiled outside Climate Pledge Arena. Wilkens led the Sonics to the 1979 NBA title.

Wilkens’ statue won’t stand alone for long. Longtime Storm point guard and four-time WNBA champion Sue Bird will have a statue unveiled outside the arena on Aug. 17. “Lenny Wilkens’ legacy in this ...

Former NBA basketball player and coach Lenny Wilkens smiles before his statue unveiling event outside of Climate Pledge Arena, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Seattle.

SEATTLE (AP) — Lenny Wilkens couldn’t wipe the smile off his face as he gazed at a bronze statue of himself at the site of his greatest coaching triumph.

On Saturday, the former Seattle SuperSonics player and coach became the first person to have a statue unveiled outside Climate Pledge Arena. Wilkens led the Sonics to the 1979 NBA title.

A red-granite colossus of Ramses II, the 13th-century BC “king of kings”, rises three storeys from a triangular pool in the atrium of the new Grand Egyptian Museum, just west of Cairo.