In a battle of wills, Pat Riley always wins — no matter the opponent or cost

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Jimmy Butler will be traded very soon, leaving another franchise to recover from his departure.

Pat Riley and the Miami Heat will have yet another franchise player exit under disappointing circumstances, and everyone will say Heat Culture lives on.

Riley, as the old gunslinger who’s thrived in virtually every era of the NBA, will move on to his next big plan as team president, and he won’t be charred or look any worse for wear because of the equity he’s built in the court of public opinion.

Perhaps he’s earned that trust, especially when juxtaposed against Butler, who has no issue in looking like the villain even if he’s not.

He’s a principled villain, if anything. A rebel with a cause.

Butler’s transgressions, whether they’ve been tacitly excused, ignored or merely quietly documented by chapter and verse, have cost him games on multiple suspensions. If these crimes are so bad, one would think the Heat franchise would’ve nipped it in the bud rather than let them pile up in order to put the hammer down.

In a battle of wills, Pat Riley always wins, and will wait it out until he wins — no matter the opponent or cost.

Heat president Pat Riley has suspended Jimmy Butler three times this month. (Al Diaz/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

The newly implemented collective bargaining agreement means more standoffs and uncomfortable situations are bound to happen — teams will have to make more shrewd decisions even as the money continues to grow.

And unintended consequences of second aprons helped create this particular circumstance, even if Riley didn’t need the threat of harsh penalties to assert his dominance or, at the least, get back his pound of flesh in ways he couldn’t over LeBron James.

Because being right seems to lord over getting it right.

Being right meant standing firm against the greatest player of this generation at the peak of his powers, not giving James free reign over the kingdom he built, and he was willing to lose James over it — even if James was ultimately destined to head back to Cleveland and, later, Los Angeles.

Being right meant letting Dwyane Wade walk when…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/in-a-battle-of-wills-pat-riley-always-wins–no-matter-the-opponent-or-cost-153743014.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2025-01-30 15:37:00

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