The Genius of Pat Riley
Alright, so I’m still picking up fragments of my brain off the floor, and slowly coming to grips with the fact that Shaquille O’Neal is now a member of the Suns.
I don’t care if the Heat are the worst team in the universe, Pat Riley should still be seriously considered for Executive of the Year. Think about what he did for a moment: In one fell swoop, dude took the single worst contract in the NBA (and arguably, in all of sports), and dumped it on a desperate franchise. Not only that, but he brought in a very exciting player that will actually give Heat fans a reason to start showing up to the arena this year.
(And let’s not forget what was perhaps his most incredible transaction: The near-miraculous shedding of Antoine Walker’s contract a few months back. ESPN Classic should run those negotiations on a continuous loop.)
Miami’s season was already down the tubes, and there were whispers that Riles’s job was in trouble. Today, he can walk down the street with his head held up high. Shawn Marion could end up taking his name off the books by opting out of his current deal this summer; the franchise will have plenty of cap space to either re-sign him or bring in other young talent to surround an increasingly unhappy D-Wade with.
Even though he did what he was brought in to do (win a title), Shaq’s contract was supposed to cripple Miami for years. Now he’s gone, and with a high lottery pick all but guaranteed this summer, the Heat and Riley have what looks to be a very bright future.
It’s the insanely brilliant work of an evil genius.
78 Responses to “The Genius of Pat Riley”
Feb.7 at 10:02 am
Tarzan Cooper says:
is pat going to keep coaching for a few more years?
Feb.7 at 10:11 am
Ryne Nelson says:
Marcel, I think it’s a bit to late for Riley to be considered for that honor. The Heat’s terrible play almost forced him into making a trade. Record should be considered well before before trades.
Feb.7 at 10:12 am
Tarzan Cooper says:
and they should definitely resign matrix, he fits perfectly with wade.
Feb.7 at 10:17 am
Gerard Himself says:
has Marion spoken to the media yet? Haven’t read anything about him so far.
Feb.7 at 10:18 am
Ryne Nelson says:
I think Marion and Wade would fit together well too, Tarzan. But the price tag might be too high…you never know.
Feb.7 at 10:24 am
Jukai says:
Haha, oh yeah, Marion and Davis on the same team, I wanna mic the locker room in those games!
Feb.7 at 10:27 am
white hot eboy says:
As usual, Marcel, you don’t listen to intelligent American’s (ie: me) and then write some obligtory pat on the back piece touting another great American’s efforts. For shame, Prime Minister of Propoganda, for shame.
Feb.7 at 10:28 am
T Money says:
The Heat will get rid of eBoy and Zo in the off season, and with the money they save from Shaq’s contract, they’ll sign Elton Brand. Then they’ll convert their lottery pick into a veteran point guard. Wade, Haslem, Marion, Brand, with Ricky Davis coming off the bench and a top 10 PG: The fastest rebuilding in NBA history…
Feb.7 at 10:30 am
peteb80 says:
I know this will bring tears to his eyes, but Marion is not the type of guy “that will actually give Heat fans a reason to start showing up to the arena this year”. He’s a great role player, but the average American won’t move his fat ass out of the couch for him. Kudos to Riley though, I thought it was impossible to move Shaq.
Feb.7 at 10:32 am
white hot eboy says:
In honor of our boy Shia, F*ck Shawn Marion.
Feb.7 at 10:36 am
Tarzan Cooper says:
F*ck the honor of shia!
Feb.7 at 10:37 am
Cheryl says:
Riley might be a genius, but he’s largely responsible for our water shortage down here. Heard on the news last night that his mansion used 3.5 million gallons of water last year. Dam, Dude! I could be washing my car and watering my brown lawn if it weren’t for you! Strange aside that was, huh?
Feb.7 at 10:38 am
Jukai says:
I wonder what Pat Riley has on Kerr that good ol’ Stevey doesn’t want the world to know…? I wonder how many bodies are buried in Kerr’s basement? How many pictures Riley has of Kerr with a bunch of 14-year-olds?
Feb.7 at 10:38 am
white hot eboy says:
3.5 million gallons!!!!!!!! No wonder that ni**as hair is always wet!!!! Damn, Cheryl, wear did you see that. What’s he got, 8 pools?
Feb.7 at 10:39 am
Jukai says:
Cheryl, 95% of that goes to the process of getting the grease out of his head everyday
Feb.7 at 10:40 am
Jukai says:
God damnit Eboy!!
Feb.7 at 10:41 am
Cheryl says:
Last night, E. The local abc broadcast. They’re doing a weeklong feature on our water shortage and talking about individual water usage. The average household uses 186,000 gallons in the course of a year. Riley was listed as #3 in the highest water usage in South f*kn Florida! Dude has “landscape issues”…
Feb.7 at 10:43 am
white hot eboy says:
Landscape issues is putting it mildly. Damn.
Feb.7 at 10:44 am
white hot eboy says:
*where
Feb.7 at 10:48 am
TADOne says:
Is Riley raising f*cking sharks?! Jesus…
Feb.7 at 10:57 am
Tarzan Cooper says:
3.5 million gallons?!!!!!!!!!?? what an asshole! someone has to find pictures of his property
Feb.7 at 10:57 am
Glen says:
Maybe I’m the only one that’s heard it, but theres rumors around Sacramento that the Kings may trade Ron Artest for Marion. Don’t have any hard evidence of that, but I’ve heard it on the radio…
Feb.7 at 10:57 am
white hot eboy says:
I’d like that better.
Feb.7 at 11:03 am
Slobodan Chutzpah says:
He needs the water to keep his 10,000-year-old, scaly body hydrated. Those hellhounds that come with the job require water as well.
Feb.7 at 11:06 am
TADOne says:
Who else are the Kings gonna throw in? Marion make close to $10 mil more than Artest. Actually, that is f*cking crazy.
Feb.7 at 11:15 am
Cheryl says:
yeah, i don’t like that one at all. i wouldn’t mind artest here as an enforcer, but not to replace marion. i’d really like to see what he and wade can do together. but i could envision a line up with ud as the center and artest or marion as the four, in games where the opponent doesn’t have a low post game.
Feb.7 at 11:18 am
Cheryl says:
back to riley water thing: he has a pool and of course several acres of landscape. but dude also has 8 bathrooms. ain’t it just he and his wife? how many showers can two people take?? anyway, i guess i’ll drop it now. just thought i’d add to the evil mystique.
Feb.7 at 11:18 am
white hot eboy says:
Cheryl, in Holly’s Post Up, BET asked if the Heat would be good with AI from Philly? I’d like him alot.
Feb.7 at 11:20 am
Tarzan Cooper says:
riles must keep thai sex slaves in his basement.
Feb.7 at 11:26 am
BETCATS says:
DO NOT BRING IN RON ARTEST. all you need on a troubled team is trouble. DO NOT DO IT. WAIT TILL THE SUMMER AND SIGN A GOOD FREE AGENT
Feb.7 at 11:30 am
TADOne says:
BET: So Marion’s character is better?
Feb.7 at 11:33 am
peteb80 says:
I bet Riley is just stocking up, in case the commies start poisoning “the purity and essence of our natural fluids”.
Feb.7 at 11:33 am
white hot eboy says:
Exactly.
Feb.7 at 11:34 am
Cheryl says:
Yeah, I like Iggy alot. he seems to be a good dude too. Shawn is just moody (probably a Pices) and needs love. DWade has the kind of personality that he’ll give Marion the kind of appreciation that he thinks he needs. When dude is content, his game is nice. But Shawn and Iggy play the same position, so a decision would have to be made.
Feb.7 at 11:39 am
BETCATS says:
Marion will be gone at the end of the year Tad, either on a flight to Clevland, back to Phoniex, to Houston or some mystery location. Heat are renting him right now.
Feb.7 at 11:45 am
TADOne says:
I doubt that BET. He isn’t opting out of $17 mil. Now, Riley may try to move him. I can definitely see that happening.
Feb.7 at 11:47 am
BETCATS says:
ok then give it 2 years
Feb.7 at 11:55 am
Madtice says:
Isn’t LeBron going to be a free agent any day soon? Perrrrhaps a Wade, Bron, Marion starting line-up, together with a nice first round center perhaps? Or PG? They might sign Brand as well, while they’re at it…
Feb.7 at 12:16 pm
Jukai says:
Lebron’s announced on numerous occasions that he’s not gonna leave Cleveland ever. Wade hasn’t made the same vows.
Feb.7 at 1:03 pm
dma says:
yeah somehow i see a lebron, wade and carmelo lineup down in miami. trade marion’s expiring contract when denver blows up the team for carmelo. then convince lebron to come on over. and they’ll sign brian scalabrine darko when his contract is up in a couple years too. and convince bosh to come down south and sign for the MLE? yeah? yeah? anybody there?
Feb.7 at 1:09 pm
Krayzie Bone says:
Shaq’s press conference is apparently starting soon. Streaming from Nba.com
Feb.7 at 1:37 pm
Allenp says:
Pat Riley is a n*gga? Who knew? I just learned this on slam.
Feb.7 at 1:38 pm
Myles Brown says:
I noticed that and chose not to. Meh.
Feb.7 at 1:46 pm
Marcel Mutoni says:
i thought bill clinton had that on lock.
Feb.7 at 1:54 pm
TADOne says:
He just has the tendencies.
Feb.7 at 1:59 pm
white hot eboy says:
Funny how it didn’t seem to phase Cheryl? It’s a JOKE. Sorry to have offended anyone. Seriously.
Feb.7 at 2:02 pm
Myles Brown says:
.
Feb.7 at 2:04 pm
white hot eboy says:
..
Feb.7 at 2:10 pm
white hot eboy says:
I thought this was going to be like Connect Four and someone was going to put up three dots, than four. Dammit.
Feb.7 at 2:31 pm
PotFoker says:
Good Ridence Fat Boy!!!
Feb.7 at 3:10 pm
B. Long says:
Is it just me or is Pat the character Al Pacino played in devils advocate come to life!?
Feb.7 at 3:48 pm
polowthaJon says:
he turned the Heat back into the pre-shaq team: multi skilled players, hard nosed defenders, and lots of athleticism. except that dwade has a ton of miles put on him thanks to the knee and shoulder.
Feb.7 at 3:54 pm
Kevin says:
the real genius of Pat Riley is that they didn’t give up the draft pick.. now watch the Heat tank and get screwed into a 5th or 6th overall pick by the Lottery system..
Feb.7 at 4:17 pm
Allenp says:
Cheryl, you now speak for us all.
Feb.7 at 4:18 pm
mat smith says:
Marcel Mutoni i cant believe you work for slam, wait till finals dumbass
Feb.7 at 4:20 pm
white hot eboy says:
Allen, we can speak like big boys if need be. You always are excellent in debate and correcting people who are wrong in their content.
Feb.7 at 4:23 pm
mat smith says:
they should remove your post like last time, you show this magazine up, showtime worked with kareem, remember????? aaron nelson will get shaq in shape and pat worked him into ground in training, mike d’antoni wont. wow, wierd post.
Feb.7 at 4:29 pm
white hot eboy says:
Perhaps I should have prefaced my comment with the disclaimer “this is meant to be heard in the voice of Chris Rock”. Then I wouldn’t be the focus of the evil eye.
Feb.7 at 5:42 pm
RV says:
i thought Darius Miles was the worse contract in all of sports, at least Shaq played and plays (sometimes)
Feb.7 at 6:06 pm
Tommy Patron says:
I wonder how Marion is going to like playing with a glory hound like DWade.
Feb.7 at 6:25 pm
Allenp says:
No evil eye. I am done with it now. No need for a debate.
Feb.7 at 7:05 pm
Cheryl says:
I actually missed it until you guys brought it to my attention. Eboy, you have been officially admonished. Don’t do it again, preface or no preface.
Feb.7 at 7:06 pm
Myles Brown says:
…
Feb.7 at 8:11 pm
FLUXLAND says:
Pre game last night Riley called the Marion-Wade combo “Jordan-Pippenesque”. Whatever that means. The Shaq press conf. is fantastic.
Feb.7 at 9:16 pm
tt says:
@white hot eboy: how far do you think the Suns will go with Shaq on their team now?
Feb.7 at 9:45 pm
Steve says:
Marcus Banks is talented too, cna push the tempo with his speed and handle, run the break, run pick and roll, attack the rim, shoot the 3ball very well, is a good scorer, and a solid pg running the offense… what he lacks in playmaking/assists is made up for by Wade’s PG ability + passin/playmakin/assists so I think its a good fit and he may finally find a home and thrive/breakout as a quality NBA point guard. Could be a good fit for him to find a home as a starting PG in Miami. Riley is gonna land Elton Brand and team him up with Marion and Wade……. all he has to do is get out from under Blount and he can make it happen sometime before this summer. He is a champion and wants to build another championship around WAde. He is no fool, he sees what it takes in todays league. It takes 3 stars, and then a team built around that. Dont underestimate Riley. If Danny Ainge could pull off getting Kevin Garnett without losing Ray Allen or Paul Pierce. Riley can pull off getting an Elton Brand without losing Dwyane Wade or Shawn Marion. If Danny Ainge could then load up a roster of roleplayers around them comprised of solid youngsters and lowpriced veterans that is capable of competing for a championship, than Pat Riley is capable of doing the same…… hell, he already did it in 05-06 in a similar but different scenario. Have faith, it can happen. Flash and the Matrix is a great fit on both ends of the court, a great fit in styles and a great fit in every aspect of the game, theyll make each other better and will be very fun to watch for the rest of this season and especially when part of a championship contender into the future.
Feb.7 at 9:47 pm
Steve says:
READ THIS WORD FOR WORD…… Why does everyone think its impossible to have a core of Marion, Wade and say an Elton Brand for next year to build a champion around? If we could clear out Blount and/or Banks along with all the other expirings and Marion doesnt opt out we could still find a way to get Brand……. Sure we would be in the luxury tax when all is said and done but look at Boston:
Ray Allen: 15 mil
Paul Pierce: 16 mil
Kevin Garnett: 22 mil And they still have a good team of roleplayers built around them in youngsters(Perkins, Rondo, Tony Allen, Big Baby Davis, Powe, Pruitt) with some low-priced veterans thrown in (House, Posey, Scalabrine, Pollard)……… we could do that too with our draft pick coming up (unless thats what it takes to get brand, which I would do), along with Cook, Banks, Quinn, Wright, Johnson, Haslem, Barron etc that could fill roles like Bostons youngsters that I named can and then we land a few House/Posey/Scalabrine types to fill out a contending roster…….. A CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM CAN DEFINITELY BE BUILT AROUND A CORE OF WADE MARION AND BRAND, AND IF ANYONE CAN DO IT PAT RILEY CAN!!!!!!!(IF WE END UP WITH BEASLEY INSTEAD OF BRAND IT WILL BE EVEN BETTER FOR THE FUTURE AND MAYBE RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING PLUS WE’LL HAVE MORE MONEY TO SPEND ON LOADING UP THE ROSTER AROUND THEM, I think Beasley will be a star bigman right from the start and a perfect fit as our lowpost scorer and athletic bigman that can run wit Flash and the Matrix as a perfect fit……. Brand would obviously be just as perfect though and more proven/of a sure thing)……… We could do it! THIS IS A GREAT DAY! THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT AGAIN, THE CLOWD IS LIFTED! Even with the horror of this year it makes it SO MUCH MORE FUN to watch for the rest of the year seeing Flash and the Matrix running together……. I hope Riley dusts off the old “showtime” playbook and system because Flash and the Matrix are LIGHTNING in the open court, Marion is the ultimate uptempo player that can start the break with his defense and rebounding throwing the outlet to Wade and then filling the wing for Wade to hook him up for an explosive finish, and Marion can even start the break and run it up himself…… Flash is a 1 man break (Marion can be too) off the steal, he can run the break like a PG nd hook up his athletic teammates all day with his vision and passing (Explosiveness, quickness and athleticism makes him unstoppable running it) or just finishing himself, and he can also fill the lane on the wing and finish with a bang. Banks can run a break and we all know Flash can do it great, and Matrix and Flash are great filling the wings for FEROCIOUS finishes…. that is explosive boy! RUN RUN RUN for the rest of this year, that will allow Wright, Cook, Davis, Banks and other athletic talents or trailers like Quinn to thrive uptempo and should be fun to watch the rest of this season….. Also the defensive possibilities of Wade and Marion on the perimeter is stunning. Both have defensive prowess and have made all-defense in the past, and with their capabilitiy, b-ball iq, instincts, length and athleticism they can REALLY SHUT DOWN the perimeter on defense, especially in the 4th quarters of games……. HOPE IS BACK IN SOUTH BEACH! Thanks for everything Shaquille, and I’ll be rooting for you in PHX. FLASH AND THE MATRIX ARE GONNA BE FUN TO WATCH.
Perfect fit in every aspect of the game on both ends of the court. Good trade for PHX.
GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT trade for Miami.
Feb.7 at 9:50 pm
Steve says:
Ryne nelson I think he should be considered. He rented Shaq for a championship but the downside was that it was supposed to kill their future…… NOW THEIR FUTURE IS BRIGHT AGAIN BECAUSE HE GOT RID OF THE UNTRADEABLE CONTRACT! YOU CAN NOT HAVE IT BOTH WAYS, AND PAT JUST HAD IT BOTH WAYS IN GETTING THE RING AND GETTING OUT OF A DIMINISHING SHAQ CRUSHING THE CAP! That is amazing.
Feb.7 at 10:56 pm
jose says:
The NBA Where AMAZING Happens!
Feb.8 at 12:50 am
Dacre says:
Doesn’t Pat Riley have like….30 adopted children?!
Feb.8 at 2:17 am
boybawang says:
just trade r.davis too..soon!
Feb.8 at 6:33 am
bitoy says:
it,s better to trade Pat Riley to the janitorial job, Miami’s success is because of Shaq-wade combination…. look what happen to the Lakers when they trade shaq to miami. Lakers eliminated for the first time in franchase history. Marion is a good player but to replace shaq …………….
no way
Feb.8 at 9:51 am
Ramsta says:
Good choice riley. I like da suns, but dantoni made a terrible choice. he should hav gone for Ming. In the draft, the heat should get a good center, then a few more free agent signings, and they’ll be a playoff team again.
Feb.8 at 10:53 am
jimmyf says:
Make D-Wade happy whatever it takes. He is the franchise. Just like Tom Brady wants Moss back, ask Wade and build around him. By the way I never heard in any interview Shaq Thanking anyone in the Heat organization for his time there or saying anything good about his Miami teammates. Good riddins you ungreatful overweight slug.
Feb.8 at 12:10 pm
jamie p says:
i think its an awesome trade on the part of the miami heats they have needed someone fast paced and willing to run because lets face it shaqs getting on now and marions 29 (i think) and marcus banks can be a threat from 3 point land. so i think miami got the better end of the deal. CLEVELANDDD RULLLEEEE
Feb.8 at 2:57 pm
jeremy says:
trading shaq could help them. dwade needs a guy like marion to complement his skills. not that they are gonna make the playoffs anyway
Feb.8 at 3:25 pm
benjamin says:
i would hardly the call the team with the best record in the west a desperate team. from phoenix, thanks for the big fella
Feb.10 at 7:27 pm
they call me a basketball sage says:
I HATE VILLANOVA! pat riley is a great coach. he should never be questioned. NEVER EVER!