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| Friday, September 21 Users: Heat will still wilt in playoffs ESPN.com |
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The Miami Heat have failed in the playoffs in recent years, but who gets the blame? We asked our users what they thought of Pat Riley's underachieving team, and frankly it surprised us. There's very little support for Riley, who has consistently led the Heat to strong regular seasons and early playoff exits. But to have such a dominant theme come from this question is odd. Is it Riley, the players, bad luck, there are options here. And, why does nobody think the Heat can suddenly change?
Your Heat Feedback Miami will continue its recent history of following strong regular seasons with playoff disappointment due to Pat Riley the team president rather than Pat Riley the head coach. Contrary to the Spotlight's assertion that the team has had the requisite talent to win in the playoffs, Miami has never been a true contender and history bares this fact. Riley has continued to believe that determination is more important than talent so the Heat has continued to be a hardnosed but predictable team that scares no one come spring. This season will be no different. Until Miami allows for the acquisition of true talent, there will be no basketball in June.
Nat Sonata
He is well dressed, stylish, focused, the consummate professional. He is driven to succeed. Too driven. He practices his teams so punishingly that they are worn out by the time the playoffs arrive. These men work harder in practice than on the court. Bobby Knight has the same philosophy; you work hard while training so the games are a picnic. Bobby has college players, however, the Heat are older and more fragile. It is time to lighten up a little. The luck of Riley will change when he de-emphasizes physical conditioning. Pat needs to know when to say when.
Chris Vetter
Simply put, Pat Riley isn't Phil Jackson. He's had the talent in Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway. He can take the team up the hill but he can't get them over the mountain. A few years back when the Heat were battling the Bulls in the playoffs was their best shot -- be Riley couldn't do it then. If you look hard at the Heat you can see them disappear more and more in the postseason. And the finger points right at Riley. It's a shame, I would like to see Zo with a ring.
Paul Harbinson
Miami's playoff problems in the past have largely been due to Riley's unwillingness, or should I dare say inability, to make the necessary adjustments during the course of a playoff series that a team needs to make. If you look at last year's series, for example, Charlotte swept Miami by playing at a much faster pace than the Heat for three straight games. Riley did nothing during the course of the series to adjust to Charlotte's style of play. Davis and Mashburn torched the Heat, and yet Riley did nothing in terms of changing his defensive assignments to try to slow those guys down. I mean, Riley is obviously a loyal guy; look at how he kept Hardaway a couple of years too long, and how he sacrificed team chemistry to not only put Alonzo in the starting lineup, but try his best to reestablish him as the focal point of the offense at the expense, primarily, of Anthony Mason and Brian Grant. But, for some reason, he has refused to modify the game plan when it is obvious that the plan is not working. You can look back to his days with the Knicks (John Starks and his 0 for 18 anyone?) and see the same problem. Fortunately, for him, he had a coach on the floor named Magic to win him a few championships before he left LA. Riley is an excellent coach, but GREAT coaches have the ability to make changes both during the course of a series and a game (Larry Brown, Phil Jackson) and Riley's track record seems to indicate he is just shy of greatness.
Keith Daniels
Pat Riley's teams play well during the regular season because they are good teams. There is nothing wrong with his lineups. He has always found the right players to fit into his scheme of things. The problem has been that he does not loosen his players during the playoffs. It is good to teach during the the first three quarters of the regular season, but then the playoffs arrive and the players keep looking over their shoulders as if they are unsure of themselves. They are. The last 20 games of the regular season, and into the playoffs, Pat Riley must trust his team's ability to win games and start treating them like the good team that they are.
Charles King
Quite simply, they're like a pretty girl with low self-esteem. They look great, but deep inside they are dealing with some serious self-doubt. Riles hasn't been a playoff factor since he left the Knicks really. Of course, the Knicks have ripped the Heat's heart out countless times, and that HAS to kill confidence and morale. Zo has only played in a 7-game series three times (once in Charlotte and twice in Miami). Eddie Jones has never been out of the second round. Brian Grant is probably still gagging from the Mother of all Chokes in Portland against the Lakers. And of course, they collectively got waxed by the Bugs (no pun intended). Yeah, they've got playoff experience, but is it GOOD playoff experience?
Lee E Smith
Scoring is the name of the game now in the NBA. It's time for the old, run down Riley machine to step aside to the run and gun style of the East. The Knicks and Heat can win in the regular season, by just squeaking out victories with their defense, but in the playoffs you have to score points. Who cares if your defense is great if you routinely score in the seventies? Riley has to look at the rest of the league and realize his style just doesn't cut it anymore. It's time to stress scoring Pat, until you do get used to the first round exits.
Luke Nelson
The reason why is that Riley stresses winning over the big picture. He has his team peak too early that when other teams are hitting their peak during the playoffs, his teams are wilting off. I have supported the Heat all of those years because they have good players and a great coach. Now, I realize that the coaches strategy is not all that perfect. It may have worked for the hungry Lakers of the 80's, but today's players lack their own focus to get them through the playoffs without good coaching. I think he needs to relax a little on his regular season coaching style and emphasize playoffs as soon as they near.
Charles
Being from the West, I've usually cared little for the Heat. Why? Because they're boring. Boring players, boring coach, boring offense... Watching them wrestle the Knicks a few years ago was more like the WWF than the NBA. But since you asked, I started thinking about it. And it seems simple to me. The Heat are a lot like Portland was two years ago. They've had good teams on paper that do well when the games don't really matter. But when it comes down to it, they just don't have guys on the roster that can score. Like Portland, there's nobody you can count on for a bucket late in the fourth quarter. There are talented guys, for sure, but just like Rasheed Wallace is talented, guys like 'Zo and Eddie Jones just aren't take-over-the-game-when-it-matters type of guys. I think the Heat should have tried to hold on to some of their guys, and then trade them to Seattle for Gary Payton. He could have single-handedly got them to the Eastern Conference Finals...Of course, I feel the same way about Portland. We still need somebody we can count on out here...
Miguel
As a longtime Heat and Pat Riley fan (my son is named Riley), I'm not immune to the frustration caused by Miami's playoff failures. As much as I admire and respect Riley, I firmly believe he should back off of his every-night-is-a-must-win philosophy. Miami's playoff failures can be pinned directly on the knees and feet of Tim Hardaway. Tim Hardaway's injuries, however, can be pinned directly on the tail of Riley. Two years ago when Dan Majerle was experiencing back pain, he was not required to practice. Rather he rode a stationary bicycle, saving himself for game-time. I question why Coach Riley insisted on practicing Hardaway at full speed, day after day. Just what exactly did he think was going to happen come playoff time? Grant and Jones will only be better this year having a year of Riley under their belts. Alonzo's health is the key -- but unless Pat Riley sees something in Anthony Carter that no one else in the basketball world does, it's looking like another early-round playoff departure.
Aram Tchividjian
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