MIAMI — The perception of Pat Riley is locked in, fixated, focused.
Amid the mayhem, Riley, during his coaching days, would sit pregame on the bench diagramming one last set of plays, dark-blue pen on light-blue card stock, oblivious to balls ricocheting about him. Even now, in his executive role, the stare is laser-like from his courtside seat, seeming unaware of the chaos that is today’s NBA game experience.
And yet, after a night in the Heat’s makeshift draft headquarters on the team’s practice court, Riley offered a lesson in how blind pursuit can also blind to the possibilities.