Miami Heat: Cavs, Hawks Controversies Have Heat Looking Good

If there’s any consolation prize for the Miami Heat this summer, it’s that they’ve come out smelling like roses through the NBA’s recent s*** storm.

It’s hard to imagine a silver lining to a summer where the Heat was summarily eviscerated in front of a global audience in the NBA Finals and then lost arguably the best player in the world to free agency.

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Yet, Miami has somehow kept the course, retooled the team with quality veterans and avoided controversy. This kind of consistency is usually associated with the San Antonio Spurs, the champs that beat Miami so badly.

It starts, as it always should in the foreseeable future, with LeBron James. Some are quick to judge Miami and its fans for being stuck on his free agency departure but the wound is still too deep and fresh. James was the face of the franchise for four years. And, if not always the team’s emotional leader he was certainly their statistical one.

Give credit then to Heat president Pat Riley, who was able to lock in All-Star Luol Deng (the best available substitute), versatile Josh McRoberts and Danny Granger, who has a chance to prove himself after two sub-par seasons. Riley also re-signed Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem and Chris Andersen, keeping the core of last year’s team reasonably intact.

The moves are part of a bigger picture, as it often is with Riley and the Heat. The ability to lure players and keep Miami as a destination franchise was crucial, particularly in the wake of James’ departure. As rumors swirl that James grew dissatisfied with Riley and the Heat for reasons that had little to do with basketball, Miami’s assembly of next season’s roster is impressive.

However, if recent allegations prove true, then Riley’s offseason might be nothing short of miraculous.

South Florida reporter and ESPN personality Dan Le Batard asserted that James was actively recruiting against the Heat even before his announcement had been published. On his Friday radio show, Le Batard reported that Pau Gasol, a top free agent target for Miami, was in a meeting with Riley when he received a text message from James.

The topic of the message? Informing Gasol that he wouldn’t be re-signing with Miami, something James had yet to disclose to the team.

This type of recruitment – or sabotage – might be S.O.P. around the league but it seems particularly damaging considering how Miami and the NBA had their offseason on hold until James’ coming-home letter was made public on July 11. Considering how the team supported James during the frenzy of 2010, this duplicity is even more shocking.

Riley, fully expecting James to re-sign with the Heat, rebounded well and brought aboard Deng, himself the subject of controversy this past week.

By now you’ve likely heard that Deng was cast in a disparaging generalization by Atlanta Hawks general manager Danny Ferry. Racist comments claiming that Deng “had a little African” in him were made during a teleconferenced meeting with Hawks owners and executives.

Ferry maintained all along that his comments, while thoughtless and inappropriate at best, were delivered from a scouting report provided by a staff member from another franchise.

That franchise is reported to be the Cleveland Cavaliers, where Deng spent part of last season.

So Atlanta’s front office burns down as a once-promising season is yet to begin and a spark has now reached Cleveland, a historically-inept franchise that managed to parlay years of futility into the second-biggest summer in NBA history (a distinction held by Miami in 2010).

Meanwhile, Riley remains fireproof as he shows he can stand the Heat.

It is the consistency of Riley’s tenure in Miami (16 postseason appearances in 19 years) one that can be seen throughout the organization. Head coach Erik Spoelstra worked his way up into the top position and has now become the team’s voice, a role that belonged to Riley for years. This summer’s coaching changes highlight that stability. As assistant coaches Ron Rothstein (a former Heat head coach that has been part of the team for three decades) and Bob McAdoo (who played for Riley and joined him in Miami in 1995) were re-assigned, Spoelstra again promoted from within.

It was this kind of dependable success that James explained attracted him to the team in the first place:

"These past four years helped raise me into who I am. I became a better player and a better man. I learned from a franchise that had been where I wanted to go. I will always think of Miami as my second home. Without the experiences I had there, I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing today."

Now he takes those lessons with him to Cleveland, a team with a first-year head coach, a young team unprepared for a likely media frenzy and alleged racism within its front office.

James and the Cavaliers might prove themselves to be worthy students and capable of duplicating Miami’s consistency.

But for now, as rumors grab headlines and at least one other team sits in disarray, the Heat has set the bar for success perhaps unreachably high.