Pat Riley Wants to Keep the Miami Heat Intact


Much like LeBron James, Pat Riley doesn’t envision or want too many changes in South Beach. The Miami Heat’s team president likes things just the way they are, and wants to keep the good times rolling while improving the team largely from within. Per Fox Sports and the Miami Herald: “I like our team, and we don’t like change,’ Riley said Wednesday. ‘There are times that it’s necessary to change but we don’t feel like it’s necessary to change.’ Riley said the Heat, as expected, will pick up the $4 million team option on point guard Mario Chalmers’ contract, and that move was announced later in the day. He said he does not expect the Heat will release guard Mike Miller as part of the NBA’s amnesty provision. And he wants to bring back center Chris ‘Birdman’ Andersen, who becomes a free agent Monday, and guard Ray Allen, who could opt out of his contact and also become a free agent. […] While he is intrigued by (Greg) Oden, Riley downplayed that Miami needs to sign another big man. He pointed out that three years ago, after Miami’s Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh had joined forces, that Heat brought in Ilgauskas and Erick Dampier to join holdover Jamaal Magloire, and coach Erik Spoelstra barely used any of the centers. ‘We didn’t have any problems against (Roy) Hibbert,’ said Riley, shrugging off the Indiana center having averaged 22.1 points and 10.4 rebounds against Miami in the Eastern Conference Finals. […] ‘We need to improve,’ Riley said. ‘Erik [Spoelstra] and I have already had two conversations about … because we’re a little older, they have to come back leaner, lighter, stronger, quicker and faster, so when you get a little bit older, you’ve got to dedicate yourself to diet and conditioning and training and becoming a better player skill-wise.’ For LeBron James, that means an offseason dedicated to the one aspect of his game that could use significant improvement, his free-throw shooting. James shot 75.3 percent from the foul line last season, which was his lowest percentage in five years. ‘Our goal now is to get him up over 90 percent from the free-throw line — or he will take that on as a goal — and then Erik’s goal is to get him back to attempting 12 free throws a game,’ Riley said, ‘if the league will ever stop allowing players to tackle him at half court.'”