NBA teams that have won a title know that the road toward this accomplishment is no walk in the park. Some teams, such as the Miami Heat , Lakers, Warriors, and Spurs, have won it multiple times. However, sustaining such a run is usually a daunting task.
In 2012 and 2013, the Heat dominated the league thanks to their "Big Three" of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh. Team president Pat Riley and head coach Erik Spoelstra carefully planned all this, adding key players to back up their superstars.
In 2014, a third consecutive title was within reach. However, the San Antonio Spurs thwarted that, defeating the Heat in five games. After that debacle, there were many questions about the franchise's future. For his part, Riley pointed out that not all great teams get to win each year. Despite falling short of winning the grand prize, the many-time champion coach tried to ease the worries of fans and supporters at the time.
"Everybody get a grip. We had a great run," Riley said during a press conference in 2014 via UPI . "You sort of run out of steam, and we need to retool. We don't need to rebuild. We need to retool, and that's what we're going to do," he added.
Retooling, not rebuilding
With the Heat falling short of their three-peat aspirations, pressing matters were at hand. One was retaining James, Bosh, and Wade at the time. Of those three names, Bron was most worried. Riley was aware of this and knew it would all depend on what LeBron decides.
"He has the right [to] do what he wants to do. He knows how we feel about him. You really need to give him time to just get away," the five-time champion coach stated at the time.
Thinking it was right to give the top pick of the 2003 NBA Draft space, Riles would be shocked at James' decision. LeBron would decide to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers in an announcement he billed as, "I'm Coming Home."
"What he had here, and what he had developed here, and what he could have developed over the next five or six years here, with the same team, could have been historic," Riley said to NBC Sports .
The Heat are back on the right track
Wade and Bosh would opt out of their deals but re-sign with the Heat. With James gone, Miami floundered the following season. They did better in the 2015-16 wars but failed to advance to the NBA Finals after losing to the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals.
"The Flash" left the Heat in 2016 after a reported disagreement with Riley. Bosh held up the fort, but the health issues tied to blood clotting forced him to end his career sooner than anyone anticipated. Despite repeated return attempts, the Georgia Tech product was forced to retire in 2019.
Riley and the Heat tinkered and tried to find a new approach to get back to the top. They turned to Jimmy Butler to lead the cause, this time surrounding him with young players such as Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo.
Since 2019, the Heat have reached the NBA Finals twice (2020 and 2023). Riley and Spoelstra have turned to a team approach, moving away from the usual reliance on multiple NBA superstars. Instead, they have focused on young talent with the intent of helping them evolve. That ploy has worked so far, although it has yet to hand them another NBA crown.
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