Former NBA player and three-time All-Star Gilbert Arenas recently went off on Miami Heat president Pat Riley on his podcast, Gil’s Arena. Amid Erik Spoelstra getting the biggest contract a head coach has ever received, Gilbert Arenas goes on to question Pat Riley’s contributions to the team as a head coach and his reputation as a ‘Heat Guy.’
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The Miami Heat just extended Erik Spoelsta’s contract to eight years worth $120 million. This new contract offered to Spoelstra surpasses the largest contract given to a head coach, which was Gregg Popovich’s five-year/$80 million contract last season.
While on his podcast, Arenas went on to compare Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley as head coaches. He was not impressed with Riley’s resume as a head coach and said, “The f**k is his [Pat Riley] resume as a [Miami] Heat guy? Lost every 1st round, didn’t make the playoffs, went upstairs…Ran upstairs because they were sorry as f**k.”
Gilbert Arenas went on to mention how Riley took the easy way and went into the front office when the team struggled. But as soon as the Heat got stars on their roster, Pat Riley stepped down to coach the team once again. When the team started to struggle once again, Riley left the head coaching position to Erik Spoelstra to go back to the Heat’s front office. Since then, Pat Riley has never gone on to coach the team.
While Arenas may have made some valid points, Pat Riley’s contributions as a front-office executive cannot be overlooked. Riley may not have been on the sidelines coaching the team but he sure did a lot while being in the front office.
Riley could be credited for luring big names like LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Jimmy Butler to the team throughout his presidency with the Miami Heat. Other accomplishments that don’t see the light of day just go to prove Arenas’ argument wrong against him.
Gilbert Arenas gives Erik Spoelstra his flowers
Gilbert Arenas showed no mercy to Pat Riley. Whereas, he only had praise for the Miami Heat’s current head coach Erik Spoelstra. Arenas went on to give Spoelstra his flowers as the team’s coach and all that he has done for the franchise.
He said, “He does the most with the least amount of talent so if we’re going to go off of coaching ability, at this moment in time he can say he is the BEST coach in the NBA.”
Erik Spoelstra started his career as a video coordinator for the Miami Heat. But since he took the head coaching position, Spoelstra has had 725 career wins, 109 Playoff wins (5th all-time), 3x champion (two as HC), 7x East titles & NBA Finals appearances.
In his 16th year as the head coach of the Miami Heat, Erik Spoelstra has led the team to the playoffs 12 times out of 15 years. Under Spoelstra’s coaching, the team has only missed out on the playoffs thrice.
