Pat Riley recently made some comments about the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers that raised some eyebrows.
After causing some to question his remarks, Riley clarified what he meant when he brought up there being an “asterisk” on the series:
Pat Riley, on how his words Friday have been wildly twisted out of context: “The asterisk is next to the Heat’s name, not the Lakers. Their title is legitimate. Our loss has an asterisk (next) to it. The Lakers were the better team. Period.”
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) October 25, 2020
Riley previously said “there's always going to be that asterisk” when talking about the NBA Finals. When he first uttered this statement, some believed he was saying the Lakers won due to the injuries to the injuries to Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic.
However, Riley is making it clear he wasn't dissing the Lakers with those initial comments. The legendary coach and executive proceeded to say that the Lakers won fair and square, saying they were the better team in the series. The Heat president had also previously showered praise on LeBron James.
Both Adebayo and Dragic suffered injuries in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Adebayo missed two games in the series due to a shoulder ailment, while Dragic wouldn't return until Game 6 in a limited fashion.
Despite the applaudable efforts of Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, and Duncan Robinson, the Heat were overwhelmed by LeBron and Anthony Davis. Also, the playoff version of Rajon Rondo showed up alongside contributions from the other Lakers role players.
There's no doubt that the Lakers were the better team in the NBA Finals. Who knows how the series would have played out if the Heat were healthy, but Riley isn't making excuses for his team and understands injuries are part of the game.
This will only give Riley and the Heat more motivation to come back even stronger next season. Miami will surely do everything it can this offseason to upgrade the roster, and we should expect them to be in the contender mix yet again.
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