CLEVELAND - In a month, Derrick Williams has gone from the end of the Heat’s bench to regular minutes with the defending NBA champion Cavaliers.
And the veteran forward cannot thank Pat Riley enough for that.
Williams wanted to play more and said he appreciates the Heat president giving him that opportunity and releasing him Feb. 6, while he was still playoff eligible with another team.
“The way things were going at that time, it was mutually agreed,” Williams said during this Heat-Cavaliers home-and-home series that concludes Monday night at Quicken Loans Arena. “That was the best thing.