Riley steps down as coach

[Scurrilous]

<snip>

"Saying he's "definitely sure" he doesn't want to coach anymore, Pat Riley stepped down as coach of the Miami Heat on Monday afternoon and announced that assistant Erik Spoelstra will take over.

Riley will remain in the role of team president.

"Today I am definitely sure I don't want to do this anymore," Riley said during a news conference at AmericanAirlines Arena. "I do want to continue to be involved in basketball. I'm excited about today and moving forward and building this franchise back to where we can be proud of it.

"Today I think the move we're going to make is in the best interest of the Heat."

Riley's announcement came on the heels of his postseason meeting with owner Micky Arison. Riley, 63, is coming off the worst season of his 25-year coaching career, having guided the Heat to a 15-67 record, which matched the worst finish in the franchise's 20-year history."

http://www.miamiherald.com/592/story/512660.html

[erpowers]

1. Should Quit as President

I think this year showed that the bigger problem was him being the team president. Riley at least allowed really good players to be traded away. If he had kept some of those players the team this year would have been better. Riley traded away Jason Kapono, Lamar Odom, and some other good players who are really helping their teams. Therefore, Riley should step down as president of the Heat.

[Awsi Dooger]

2. Odom was part of the trade to the Lakers, the deal that acquired Shaq

Along with Caron Butler, Brian Grant and a first round pick. So those guys are irrelevant to the more recent personnel mistakes Riley has admittedly made.

That title is worth more than a dozen Caron Butlers and Lamar Odoms, as good as they are.

I've been in Miami since December 13 and you could see this coming. Riley did a very long interview on Jim Mandich's radio show maybe 2 months ago and his tone was reflective and almost nostalgic. I knew he was done. He conceded in a recent Herald article that he has some regret about not stepping down two years ago, after the Heat won the title.

That's why it was over blown criticism when he decided to take time from the bench to scout prospects in March. He had no intention of coming back as coach.

Riley said recently he had wrongly deviated from his old scouting priorities, things like intensity level, team chemistry and players who hate to lose, in favor of raw physical talent.

[erpowers]

3. Part of the Reason for the Bad Play

My point was that part of the reason for the bad play of the team was that he traded away so many good players over the last few years. I do not think he thought Shaq would fall off so fast. He would have had a better team if he had kept those players. That is why I think he needs to step down as the president of the team.