NBA basketball legend Dwyane Wade was honored with a statue of his likeness over the weekend, highlighting his time with the Miami Heat, which he helped win three championships while making 13 All-Star appearances along the way.
The Miami Heat held a ceremony outside their arena Sunday to inaugurate Wade as the first player immortalized with a statue.
The statue went viral Sunday over its portrayal of Wade’s face, seemingly unrecognizable from his likeness, although Wade said he liked it.
Sports fans in Michigan have immortalized several heroes over the years, honoring athletes and coaches for their performances. Here’s a look at a few in the Wolverine state:
Lansing and Michigan State star Magic Johnson guards Breslin Center
Earvin “Magic” Johnson was honored with his 12-foot bronze statue outside Michigan State University’s Breslin Student Event Center in 2003.
Johnson first attended Lansing Everett High School, then went to MSU — winning the 1979 NCAA championship over Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores. He later won five NBA titles and Olympic gold.
The statue, designed by Highland Park, Illinois-based Omri Amrany, shows Johnson with a basketball in one hand while using the other hand to direct his teammates. The artwork cost $250,000, funded by private donations.
Detroit hosts pantheon of sports legends
- Red Wing legends Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio and Ted Lindsay all have statues lining the Little Caesars Arena concourse, where the Red Wings play near downtown. The three led some of the greatest Red Wings teams of the mid-20th century.
- Lions Hall of Famer Barry Sanders is immortalized outside of Ford Field, where the team plays its home games, with an 8-foot statue outside Gate B near the corner of Montcalm and Brush streets.
- Comerica Park includes a legion of Hall of Famers located along the left center field wall. Former Detroit Tigers Ty Cobb, Charlie Gehringer, Hank Greenberg, Willie Horton, Al Kaline and Hal Newhouser all stand 13 feet high.
- Boxing great Joe Louis is immortalized by a monumental, 24-foot long arm and fist held in balanced suspension from a pyramidal support of bronze poles at the corner of Jefferson and Woodward avenues. Installed in 1986, it rises 24 feet above the downtown intersection. A tribute to Joe Louis is inscribed on the arm. The statue was controversial when placed because it only depicts Louis’ arm and hand.
- A full body statue of Louis welcomes guests at the main entrance to the Huntington Place convention center in downtown Detroit.
CMU honors coaching legends Kramer, Deromedi
Central Michigan University has honored football coaching legends Roy Kramer and Herb Deromedi outside of the Chippewa Champions Center at the north end of Kelly/Shorts Stadium in Mount Pleasant.
The statues were designed and sculpted by Brett Gill of East Grand Rapids and were revealed in 2020.
Kramer led the program from 1967-77 and had an 83-32-2 record during his time as the Chippewa head coach.
Deromedi, who immediately followed Kramer as CMU’s head coach from 1978-93, led the program to a 110-55-10 record and was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
University of Michigan’s Bo Schembechler
No statues of former athletes occupy “The Big House” at the University of Michigan, but Bo Schembechler, the Wolverines’ head coach from 1969-89 is depicted outside Schembechler Hall for his 194-48-5 record at the university, making him one of the most winningest college football coaches of all time.
The statue, depicting the coach walking the sidelines with a headset in one hand, was vandalized in 2021 with red paint and a message of support for the survivors of sexual assault. After Schembechler’s death, he, the school’s athletic doctor, Robert Anderson, and others were accused of committing or covering up abuses, which led to a major financial settlement. There have been calls to remove the statue.