Heat coach Riley on road scouting talent for NBA draft

[Warhawk]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3285207

MIAMI -- Pat Riley's search to bring young help to the Miami Heat is officially underway.
Riley, the Heat coach and president, was in State College, Pa., on Sunday, watching Indiana freshman guard Eric Gordon play against Penn State. Gordon scored 26 points, but the Hoosiers (No. 17 ESPN/USA Today, No. 18 AP) lost to the Nittany Lions, 68-64 in overtime.
Riley is expected in Miami on Monday night when the Heat host the Los Angeles Clippers.
There seems to be a strong chance, however, that Riley will not coach the Heat when they face the New York Knicks on Wednesday and the Orlando Magic on Friday, because several conference tournaments will be going on in earnest during that time.
Riley hasn't said which of his assistant coaches will fill in if he does, in fact, miss any Heat games. Former Heat head coach and current top assistant Ron Rothstein filled in last season when Riley missed 22 games because of hip-replacement surgery, and Erik Spoelstra has long been considered someone that Riley is grooming for an eventual head-coaching position.
Riley revealed plans last week to miss some games to scout players who may be entering this year's NBA draft, an unusual move but one that the team obviously feels is important in its rebuilding plan.
Riley plans to evaluate talent at several major college tournaments, with the Big 12 postseason event -- featuring Kansas State fresman Michael Beasley, who is widely expected to be the No. 1 pick if he enters the draft -- among his most likely stops, and also may see some NCAA tournament games as well.
The Heat, with the worst record in the NBA at 11-50, have the best chance right now of winning the lottery and the No. 1 overall pick.
Riley did not fly back to South Florida with his team after Saturday night's losses in Atlanta. Miami was dealt two defeats; first, a 114-111 overtime decision in the game that began on Dec. 19 and had the final 51.9 seconds ordered to be replayed by the NBA after an official scoring error, followed by a 97-94 loss in the regularly scheduled matchup.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

 

[hoopsfan]

That's a creative way to bail on the team, Pat.
He actually stuck around longer than I thought he would.

 

[RIP miyagi]

If riley is looking out for the team's best interests, i think he needs to consider leaving. Im gonna laugh if they end up with a bad pick and he did all of that scouting.

 

[PurpleHaze]

Miami sealing top draft pick?

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/basketball/nba/03/10/wade.out.ap/index.html

Wade to miss rest of Heat season

Posted: Monday March 10, 2008 12:04PM; Updated: Monday March 10, 2008 12:04PM

MIAMI (AP) -- Dwyane Wade's season with the Miami Heat is over.
Heat coach Pat Riley announced Monday that Wade, who has battled knee pain throughout the season, will not play in Miami's final 21 games this year.

 

[Warhawk]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/basketball/nba/03/10/wade.out.ap/index.html

Wade to miss rest of Heat season

Posted: Monday March 10, 2008 12:04PM; Updated: Monday March 10, 2008 12:04PM

MIAMI (AP) -- Dwyane Wade's season with the Miami Heat is over.
Heat coach Pat Riley announced Monday that Wade, who has battled knee pain throughout the season, will not play in Miami's final 21 games this year.

Well, you can't seal a top pick, but you can seal up one of the worst records in hopes of getting it.

And yeah, that is where they are headed.

 

[kennadog]

Now this is "tanking" at it's best.

 

[NoBonus]

Should prove to be an interesting few years for Miami as they have gone from champs to completely giving up. All of their games for the rest of the season should be half-price to attend; season ticket holders should get refunds.

It does make me wonder if SOME sort of deal will be done with the Kings or Ron Artest. Additionally, it makes me wonder how long D-Wade will want to stick around. Marion will be gone ASAP. Honestly, how long would they want to play for the Miami Beat, I mean Heat.

 

[gunks]

Miami Tankers should be penalized 5 draft positions for this shamelessly obvious tanking. Good god.

 

[HndsmCelt]

Well teams have done this kind of thing before but it is NOT good for the NBA to have teams essentially trhowing half their games each season.

 

[kennadog]

Miami Tankers should be penalized 5 draft positions for this shamelessly obvious tanking. Good god.

I agree or even be moved to last place ot lose their selection altogether.

 

[hrdboild]

I don't think tanking is quite as scandalous as it's made out to be. Yeah we'd like to think that all the games matter, but the reality is that being eliminated from the playoffs means you're really just preparing for next year and if a better draft pick is going to improve your chances next year, then why wouldn't you want that? Miami is bad enough anyway, I think they've proven that up to this point in the season, that they're going to get a top 5 pick anyway. If they lose out the rest of the season they maybe improve their odds by one or two spots at the most. What good is it having Dwayne Wade risk further injury? Is that what you'd want as a fan? Is that what you'd want as a GM? Nothing Miami does from here on out is costing us a draft spot anyway. The only ones who potentially lose in this scenario are Minnesota, Seattle, Memphis, and New York -- and even then the odds don't change much for them either. Actually, seeing last place teams jockeying for "worst overall record" pole position adds a little intrigue at the end of a long NBA season where there otherwise would be none. It means the only teams that really have no stake in winning or losing are those stuck in the middle between making the playoffs and a top 5 draft spot. Looking at the standings this season, that's only 3 teams in the West (Kings, Blazers, Clippers). With the exception of Miami and New York (both top 5 pick contenders), nobody in the East is too far out of the playoffs right now to tank the rest of the season. Well, except maybe Indiana due to injuries. So that's 4 teams out of 30. Seems like the system is working. I say, tank on!

 

[kennadog]

^^Then maybe they shouldn't charge people for any more games this year, then.

 

[RIP miyagi]

i don't know, i wouldn't count them out. with both dwyane and marion, i think they are maybe a big man away from being competitive again.

 

[Warhawk]

Riley returns to Heat sideline after college scouting trip

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3296639

MIAMI -- The Pat Riley scouting tour is over, for at least a few days.
Riley was back with the Miami Heat on Sunday, coaching his team against the Dallas Mavericks. He missed Friday night's game against the Orlando Magic because he was midway through a three-day trip to evaluate top college players who most likely will be available in the NBA draft.
"Got a lot of notes, did a lot of travel," Riley said. "Four cities in two days and saw the players, so far, that I needed to see. Now we move on."
The Heat, assured a spot in the NBA lottery, have the league's worst record -- and, as of now, the best chance of obtaining the No. 1 pick in the June draft. Because the team believes the draft will play a crucial role in its rebuilding, Heat owner Micky Arison asked Riley to see several league tournaments and evaluate top college prospects in person.
Riley said the trip afforded him the chance to see certain things that aren't necessarily caught on television or tape, like the way a player warms up before a game and how attentive he is during timeouts and on the bench.
"When you get down, up and close, you feel the presence of a player," Riley said. "You can see the presence of a player. You see every little nuance, so I think it's essential to be able to have that feeling about them. Most of the time when you bring them in here for workouts, they won't work out. They won't work out hard. They won't be competitive. So you either go off film or what you saw."
Riley saw tournament games at the Southeastern Conference, Conference USA, Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conference. He studied a list of prospects that included Kansas State's Michael Beasley, Memphis' Derrick Rose and LSU's Anthony Randolph -- all freshmen presumed to be entering this year's draft.
He also saw another highly touted freshman, Indiana guard Eric Gordon, last weekend. That trip essentially began Miami's process of studying its draft options.
"You just never know what a top pick could mean to you from a leverage standpoint if you decide to trade it," Riley said.
The Heat have never had a pick higher than fourth in their 20-year history. They chose Glen Rice at No. 4 in 1989, Steve Smith at No. 5 in 1991 and Dwyane Wade at No. 5 in 2003.
Riley may leave the Heat again in the coming weeks to see NCAA games. The tournament begins Thursday; Miami plays Friday at home against Washington and then again Saturday at Charlotte, so it's possible Riley could miss either of those to see a first- or second-round matchup.
"I'll probably be out," Riley said. "If I miss a game, it'll be because the timing is such that that game will be during that time. If I can avoid that, I'll try to avoid it."