The Miami Heat just concluded one of the worst seasons in franchise history, and many are pointing fingers at team president Pat Riley for that. “Riles” is being blamed for how he handled the dramatic Jimmy Butler trade saga, which significantly affected the team’s performance and approach this season.
While the nine-time NBA champion confirmed that was indeed the case, the “Godfather” made it clear he’s now focused on rebuilding the Heat’s future and he emphasized he’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
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“The new 80 is the new 60. I’m competitive as hell. I love being in the bowl. I got a little depressed after the last two games. Micky Arison and Nick Arison and I met and they’ve been very good to me, and they said carry on, Pat. I’m going to carry on and try to make this thing better,” said Riley early this month.
Sticking to tradition and adapting to change
The fact that Pat is still in the NBA at the age of 80 is truly a remarkable feat and makes him one of the oldest personnel working in the league right now. The Hall of Famer is known for his old-school leadership style, philosophy, and approach to team-building. That’s why one of the biggest knocks on Riley as an executive is his reluctance to adapt to the modern NBA landscape. His handling of departures, like LeBron James in the past and now Jimmy, only adds fuel to that criticism.
But that’s also simply because the former Showtime Lakers head coach stubbornly believes in his principles and style, which, after all, has led to nine championships. However, Riles’ style doesn’t mean that he’s never going to be open to adopting change. In fact, just recently, the president admitted that he’s added some tweaks behind the meaning of the very famous Heat slogan called “Heat culture.”
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“Has it been adjusted in some way, shape, or form? Yes, and you have to for this generation of players and the league,” Riley said in defense of Heat Culture via the Miami Herald. “But I’m proud of the culture. I’m proud of the environment that we have created over the years, for everybody here inside who really knows it. And for the people outside who don’t really know it but want to comment on it because it’s fashionable to comment on it and criticize it, to hell with them.”
On the future of the Miami Heat
Riles didn’t really clarify how he’s tweaked the meaning of Heat Culture, but the slogan’s message continues to be that Miami is the hardest working, best-conditioned, most professional, unselfish, toughest, meanest and nastiest team in the NBA. Miami has obviously not been the team that they want to be consistently over the years, and their president wants to change that.
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This coming summer, Riley is bullish on not running it back and rightfully so. He vows that the team will make pivotal deals that will help support their two main guys, Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo.
“The Godfather” believes they’re in a strong position to pull it off, pointing to the key difference this offseason: for the first time in years, they have the assets, young talent, and draft capital to reshape the roster in the post-Butler era.
At 80, Pat is as active as ever, facing immense pressure to deliver. But given everything he’s achieved since entering the league in 1967, it’s no surprise the franchise still trusts him to get it done.