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View Full Version : Pat Riley will return to bench to coach Wade, James and Bosh, NBA sources say



polamalubeast
07-09-2010, 11:19 AM
Pat Riley will return to bench to coach Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh, NBA sources say
BY Mitch Lawrence
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Friday, July 9th 2010, 4:00 AM


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/2010/07/09/2010-07-09_pat_could_coach_trio.html#ixzz0tCcyuiCb




Miami Heat president Pat Riley is the undisputed winner in the great gold rush of 2010, walking off with the mother of all free-agent hauls in LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

So when does Riley come down from his executive suite at American Airlines Arena and return to his place on the bench?

How 'bout the season-opener?

While it looks like this is the perfect team and time for Riley to come back to coach, Wade made a pre-emptive strike against his return, saying on Wednesday that Erik Spoelstra will continue to coach the Heat.

But league sources who are familiar with Riley's thinking feel that Spoelstra will be on a short leash.

"Pat won't come back for just Wade and Bosh, because that's not a sure thing in Pat's mind," said one Eastern Conference coach. "But with LeBron and those two, that's a sure thing for Pat. He will come back if they get LeBron."

Not immediately and probably not until Spoelstra shows he can't handle a team with so much star-power.

For now, Riley has to continue to get Spoelstra several more players to fill out his starting lineup and roster. The only other players under contract are Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers and Kenny Hasbrouck, a D-League product. Riley will continue to try to find a new home for Beasley, but the forward has drawn little interest.

"After LeBron, Wade and Bosh, that's a bare-bones roster," said one Eastern Conference president. "You could see a bunch of guys brought in for the minimum, maybe as many as eight guys. They'll get the pick of the litter from among the guys who are minimum players, because Miami is still seen an attractive place to play, and some guys are going to want to be on a team that has a real shot of winning the title."



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/2010/07/09/2010-07-09_pat_could_coach_trio.html#ixzz0tCclvrPF