The departure of franchise icon Dwyane Wade this summer was probably the biggest black eye in the history of the Miami Heat. Even team president Pat Riley is willing to admit that much.
In his first public comments since Wade’s decision to leave for the Chicago Bulls, Riley held a press conference on Saturday in which he took responsibility for Wade’s exit and expressed regret and shock that everything played out the way that it did, per Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post.
Pat Riley: "Obviously we've had a tough summer. Period."
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) July 16, 2016
Pat Riley: "What happened with Dwyane floored me."
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) July 16, 2016
Pat Riley: "I'm gonna miss what I might have had planned for (Wade) and his future and how I saw the end going for him."
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) July 16, 2016
Pat Riley on Wade: "My responsibility to make it happen. I didn't make it happen… I have great regret that I didn't immerse myself in it."
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) July 16, 2016
Pat Riley said he should've "gotten in a canoe and paddled to The Mediterranean" if that's what it took to keep Wade.
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) July 16, 2016
If you recall, Riley reportedly did not even speak with Wade during the contract negotiation process. Though Wade would insist afterwards that he had no ill will towards Riley for his handling of the situation, it’s clear that feelings were hurt and a lot of respect was lost. It’s especially so considering that Wade wound up taking a deal with the Bulls that was worth only marginally more money than what the Heat were offering after accounting for state income tax.
The decision to not do more to keep Wade may ultimately turn out to be the right call from a pure basketball standpoint. But Riley understands that the whole debacle has done irreparable damage to the Heat’s romanticized image as a tight-knit family organization, so it’s good to see him accept the blame for a truly sorry moment in the history of the franchise.
