Pat Riley has plenty of thoughts.
Resting players is a travesty that the NBA needs to address, he said Wednesday. Having a head-to-head tiebreaker with Chicago for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, even though his Miami Heat played the Bulls only three times instead of the customary four, was ridiculous.
All that and more was revealed in Riley’s annual end-of-season address, a rambling smorgasbord of comments from the Basketball Hall of Famer and Heat president who just finished his 22nd season with the franchise. As per usual, there was a clear sense of optimism for what’s next with the Heat.
“I do love this team,”
Riley said. “And I love what we have built.”
Riley said he was gutted by Miami missing the playoffs this season, one in which the Heat won 30 of their final 41 games. Even that wasn’t enough to overcome an 11-30 start to the season, and Miami didn’t reach the postseason for the second time in the past three years.