Pat Riley
Pat Riley
Patrick James "Pat" Rileyis an American professional basketball executive, and a former coach and player in the National Basketball Association. He has been the team president of the Miami Heat since 1995 and head coach in two separate tenures. Widely regarded as one of the greatest NBA coaches of all time, Riley has served as the head coach of five championship teams, four with the Los Angeles Lakers and one with the Heat...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionCoach
Date of Birth20 March 1945
CityRome, NY
CountryUnited States of America
We were a minute and a half away from the Finals -- big deal, ... It's about winning a championship.
We're going to go at it (Wednesday) without trying anything new. I think if we ever get to that point where we play them down the road we'll probably have a few other things that they haven't seen.
When we are in the penalty, you have to go to him as much as you can. We kept trying to call his number.
We know he's a big-time tumbler. He goes hard to the basket. He hits the floor a lot. If he could play he'd be out there.
There are universal truths of defensive basketball. If a guy is open, guard him. Don't leave him standing in the corner or out on the three-point line.
I think I read a headline today, 'Great players versus a great team', and I hope we do have great players on the way to becoming a great team. I think a win like this today begins to develop a sense of confidence.
His conditioning is the thing. Coming right in to the playoffs and expecting him to play well is unrealistic.
Our depth today stepped up. Different guys have to play different roles because three key players are out. We are starting to feel more comfortable.
Strange things happen when you think things are at their worst. I thought Gary (Payton) did a great job of running the offense and making some big plays in the fourth quarter. James Posey had timely shots and two big offensive tip-outs. We had other players step up when we had to.
I haven't seen players do that in a long, long time.
That's a big mistake on his part right now. He's too young to be saying that. It's just indicative of the young players today.
As (the game) got worse, we started getting stronger and stronger and Antoine made big plays for us, big shots for us. That's what he's capable of doing. He's very explosive.
But the players are so instinctive, they always put a hand on these guys.
I really have some concerns going into the playoffs about it. I voiced it and he listened. So we'll see what happens.