It is the context Pat Riley chose in the wake of LeBron James leaving the Miami Heat during the 2014 offseason, following four consecutive trips to the NBA Finals and championships in 2012 and '13.
"Generational team."
It was what Riley said he was attempting to build with the collaboration of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and what he would attempt to build again.
"Every (so often), you have a chance to build a generational team," he said on July 30, 2014. "You're not going to win 10, 12 years in a row. That chain has been broken prematurely. We are going to try to make it another generational team. That's what my objective is."
And, so, he built back, methodically, keeping an eye on the next opportunity he could turn salary-cap space into something generational.
That opportunity could come during the 2021 offseason, when the Heat, pandemic economy allowing, could have sufficient cap space for at least one elite free agent, to align alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
But such an approach also can come with sacrifice, perhaps not as stark as the type the Heat made in advance of the 2010 offseason (15-67 in 2007-08), but, still, potentially putting a more immediate championship chase on the back burner.
Which brings us to the NBA rumor mill returning to full rev this past week, with concurrent word (not denied by the New Orleans Pelicans) of Jrue Holiday being available on the trade market, and of Giannis Antetokounmpo leaving his 2021 free-agency options open.
For the Heat, that could mean pulling back this offseason to instead go all in during the 2021 offseason, when the free-agency class could include Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Victor Oladipo and James, among others.
That would correspond with a "generational" focus.
Except ... is that still a thing?
Consider that the only repeat NBA champion since the Heat doubled up in 2012 and '13 was the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and '18. Then, a year later, Kevin Durant, with a chance for his own generational statement with the Warriors, departed for the Brooklyn Nets in free agency. And after Leonard won the 2019 title with the Toronto Raptors, he left weeks later for the Los Angeles Clippers.
So if the players themselves seemingly no longer are prioritizing "generational," then should teams?
For example, if the Heat's 2021 cap space goes to anyone beyond Antetokounmpo, would that put them on a path toward "generational," even with Adebayo and Tyler Herro in place (with all due respect to Butler, who will turn 32 prior to the start of 2021-22)?
Or has this become about living in the moment, like the moment the Nets are attempting to create with Durant and Kyrie Irving?
Then look at some of the recent contracts taken by some of the league's leading men. Leonard, for example, took a three-year, $103 million deal from the Clippers in the 2019 offseason that included a 2021 opt out. James signed a four-year, $153 million contract with the Lakers in the 2018 offseason that included an opt out after three seasons. George, similarly, gave himself an opt out after three seasons on the four-year, $137 million contract he signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2018 offseason.
And that's not even getting into players forcing trades ahead of expiration, with George moving on from the Thunder a year after signing.
The point being that today's players hardly appear to be thinking "generational," but rather are keeping an eye on what could come next, no matter where it might come next.
The Leonard deal with the Clippers is the perfect example of one foot out a door shortly after walking through the door.
So while "generational" might have been the approach that fueled Riley and the Heat toward the 2010 offseason, and while it left Riley heated during the 2014 offseason, now, as much as ever, the NBA appears to be an in-the-moment league.
