Patience, as a virtue, can be profoundly overrated. Pat Riley has known that well in the 25-plus years he has been one of the best things ever to happen to sports in Miami. And Heat fans have almost always benefited from that lack of patience.
The Heat team president quietly turned 76 a few days ago. Sometimes a man gets to feeling he doesn’t have all the time in the world to sit around crossing fingers on the status quo when there are dominoes to tip, deals to be made. Chances to take.
And so Riley’s Heat was in the mix again Thursday, NBA draft-deadline day, working phones in the midst of a four-game losing streak that saw Miami fall to 22-22 and a tie for fifth place in the East. Getting through the conference and back to the NBA Finals this season has seemed a steep climb — hence, the interest Thursday in a deadline-day roster infusion.
This happened:
Miami acquired guard Victor Oladipo, a two-time all-star averaging 20.8 points this season, from Houston for Avery Bradley and Kelly Olynyk.
The Heat also obtained power forward Nemanja Bjelica from Sacramento in exchange for Moe Harkless and Chris Silva.
Miami had earlier acquired forward Trevor Ariza from Oklahoma City for Meyers Leonard and a 2027 second-round pick.
That’s a beefed-up rotation, added depth at forward and a 20-point scorer without giving up anybody they would truly miss, such as a Duncan Robinson. (And LaMarcus Aldridge might yet be added). Not bad.
Now here is what did not happen Thursday:
Kyle Lowry-to-Miami didn’t happen. Not for a lack of effort or desire, but because Riley, uncharacteristically, showed patience.
He declined to go all-in for Lowry, whose addition at age 35 would have improved Miami but not alone made it an East favorite.
He declined to go all-in by refusing to include second-year man Tyler Herro in the deal, the young player Toronto demanded.
The Raptors in turn kept Lowry rather than trade him — although he will be a free agent this summer able to sign with anyone, including the Heat.
So this is where Riley gets beat up on social media. You began to see it Thursday even as the Raptors’ talks with the 76ers, Heat and Lakers were still ongoing.
The memes of Riley asleep on the job while other teams swung big deals. The anonymous arrows shot at Riley from all directions. Five months ago this man had the Heat back in the NBA Finals — and with the same roster so many wanted dismantled Thursday.
Now, because he didn’t close the Lowry deal, Riley is the old man who froze when he should have acted?
Riley doesn’t deserve any of that, of course.
Nobody in charge of any major team in South Florida — not the folks running the Dolphins, Marlins, Panthers, Inter Miami or Canes football — has done more or earned more benefit of doubt, on moves made or not made, than Riley.
And I am not defending a man resting on distant laurels (although four championships won, no matter how distant, would be laurels enough). I’m talking about the godfather who drafted Bam Adebayo and traded for Jimmy Butler and had the Heat two wins shy of a championship five months ago.
If Riley’s statement Thursday was that he wanted Herro as a valuable core piece moving forward more than he saw Lowry as a difference-maker at 35, well, I’ll ride with Riley on that.
Miami was prepared to take a big swing and stood ready to disrupt its lineup and rotation enough to lure Lowry, a six-time all star, from Toronto. Riley reportedly might have parted with Goran Dragic or Andre Iguodala and with Robinson, but he drew the line at Herro.
Rumors and speculation had about a third of the Heat roster on edge, wondering if they’d soon be packing bags for another city. Other players had been linked to an interest by Miami (including Oladipo), but Lowry was the biggest available targeted prize entering the final day to deal.
“Guys have to go through this every year, and it just gets noisier and noisier,” said coach Erik Spoelstra. “It’s much different than it was 20 years ago, just the amount of rumors. But part of being a professional in this business is learning to compartmentalize.”
Lowry, the greatest player in Toronto Raptors history, gave what he knew might have been his final postgame news conference there Wednesday night.
“It was kind of weird tonight not knowing what the next step would be,” he said. “It was definitely, for sure, different.”
The occasion was momentous enough that the Canadian icon and courtside Raptors fan Drake, the rapper, FaceTimed Lowry during his media session.
Lowry happened to turn 35 on Thursday. It was the same day the Heat announced its AmericanAirlines Arena would soon be re-branded as the FTX Arena, named after a cryptocurrency exchange company. Getting used to the new name on the building won’t be as easy as getting used to Lowry playing in it would have been.
Like so many contemporaries across sports, Lowry at 35 shows little sign of relinquishing his prime. He has made six straight all-star teams and remains at the top of his game. He is a 3-point marksman and willing perimeter defender, a strong rebounder for his size and excellent playmaker dishing assists.
His bulldog style and leadership fits everything right, and real, about Heat Culture. If the best trios in the league were offered up for appraisal, the Heat would have been in the conversation with Butler, Bam and Kyle Lowry.
Instead the Heat tweaked its roster notably with three deals. Though none was the cannonball splash a trade for Lowry would have been, getting Oladipo for next to nothing and not giving up Hero or Robinson made it a win-win day for Riley.
So the nucleus that reached the 2020 NBA Finals remains largely intact but augmented by scoring punch with Oladipo. And whatever seismic addition may be ahead must wait until free agency this summer.
If the gloriously impatient Pat Riley is asking for a bit of patience on that now, well, give it with the faith he’s earned.
