Michael Douglas pays tribute to Pat Riley with credit for Gordon Gecko’s hair

While paying tribute to the former Los Angeles Lakers coach Pat Rileywho won five NBA championship titles with the team as head coach from 1981 to 1990. legendary actor Michael Douglas mentioned his Wall Street character, Gordon Gecko.

Douglas spoke at the unveiling of the statue from Riley. He joked that his Wall Street character’s look was inspired by Riley in a very specific way.

‘Gordon Gecko’s haircut came from Pat Riley’ – Michael Douglas finds inspiration for his iconic role in Wall Street from Lakers’ Hall of Fame coach pic.twitter.com/TERNIPDLpk

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 22, 2026

“And yes, I’ll have to admit that Gordon Gecko’s haircut came from Pat Riley,” Douglas said, which made some members of the crowd laugh.

Gordon Gekko is Douglas’ character in the Wall Street series. The first film was released in 1987 and a sequel followed in 2010. Douglas starred in Wall Street alongside Charlie Sheen, Martin Sheen and Daryl Hannah.

Pat Riley’s legendary run with the Lakers

Riley is heavily associated with his time with the Lakers. He played for them from 1970 to 1975, winning the 1972 NBA Finals with them.

After retiring as a player, Riley joined the Lakers as an assistant coach in 1979. He would then be promoted to head coach in 1981, remaining in that position until 1990.

During his tenure as coach of the Lakers, Riley led the team to four NBA championships. They won titles in 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988. The Lakers also won the NBA Finals in 1980 when Riley was still an assistant coach.

He would then join the New York Knicks from 1991 to 1995, and Riley would then coach the Miami Heat for several years, winning one NBA Championship.

As an executive, Riley won two NBA championships. The Heat matched the “Big Three” (LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade) in 2012 and 2013.

Finally, the Lakers honored Riley in a fitting way. His statue is located in front of the Cripto.com Arena. He has been immortalized with the likes of Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.