Back on June 19th Pat Riley, team president of the Miami Heat, issued a challenge through the media to his three star players. It seemed a shot across the bow if you will excuse the naval term. He got a little Heat-ed (see what I did there) and called on the big three to stick with the team and see things through. He compared this years set back, at adding to the Miami trophy case, to the L.A. Lakers of the 1980's with their five championships in twelve years. That is seven years with no trophies. Currently with LeBron at the helm the heat have had two championships in four years. That seems like a pretty decent average to me, so maybe Pat has a point when he says everyone from media to players need to get a grip.
That has been the most interesting thing about this situation, how everyone involved seems to be using the media to communicate. Pat Riley tells the press that they and his stable of thoroughbreds need to be patient. LeBron on the 24th announced through his agent that he will be opting out of his contract. On the surface it would seem that the two are not getting along but I have a hunch that there is more than meets the eye here. Maybe LeBron is giving Pat Riley a chance to show his hand. In essence he is saying "show me what you are going to do to make it worth my time to stay." Opting out of his contract could be beneficial to the heat as well. This way they can make some room for additional help on the team by asking LeBron, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh to take a little less money. (Wade and Bosh are expected to opt out as well.)
Doesn't it seem a little bizarre that we have to watch this all unfold as if the concerned parties aren't talking to each other without the help of the press. But then it occurs to me that we wouldn't be spending nearly the amount of time on this that we are unless we could stir up some drama. What else is there to talk about right now. World Cup soccer?
No comments:
Post a Comment