Pat Riley’s influence looms large in Miami Heat-New York Knicks series

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When the Miami-New York Eastern Conference semifinals series opens Sunday at Madison Square Garden, Heat president Pat Riley will be in the arena, a venue he knows well.

He may not be smiling, but he may have one of those all-knowing glances.

Directly and indirectly, his influence is all over this series.

Since joining the Heat from the Knicks in 1995 to become coach and team president, Riley has helped turned the Heat into one of the premier franchises in the NBA with six Finals appearances and three championships.

“He’s one of the ultimate competitors in this league,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told USA TODAY Sports in 2020. “If you put together a Mount Rushmore of NBA winners and influencers of the last 40 years, he’s on that rock. Just look at his track record. He has reinvented himself more times than arguably anybody else in this league. It always is to put whatever team he’s with in the best chance to compete for a title, and he’s done that over and over.”

Miami Heat team president Pat Riley also has had an influence on the New York Knicks.

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While the word “culture” becomes more grating by the day, Riley has established a specific standard. There is a chain of command, a player will be well-conditioned, attention to details is necessary, and shots may or may not go in, but there must be an adherence to defensive principles even in today’s score-happy NBA.

It has some aspects of the military, which isn’t surprising given Riley’s affinity for the armed forces.

The Heat aren’t for everyone either. Players have left, been traded and run off, but it can be rewarding for players who want to be a part of it — Alonzo Mourning, Shaquille O’Neal, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem.

Now, it’s Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro (out with an injury), Kyle Lowry and Max Strus. They don’t have a championship with the Heat yet, though the first three played in the 2020 Orlando bubble finals and all five played in last season’s conference finals — barely losing to Boston in…

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Author : USA TODAY Sports

Publish date : 2023-04-29 23:06:27

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