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A day off Heat's Riley too 'disgusted' to hold practice
Posted: Monday May 15, 2000 07:53 PM
MIAMI (AP) -- Pat Riley took a day off from coaching Monday. The Miami Heat coach was too "disgusted" to even try after his team's effort against the New York Knicks in Game 4, a 91-83 loss that has this Eastern Conference semifinal series tied at two games apiece. No offensive drills. No defensive work. Nothing more than a videotape session, a painful rerun of Game 4. The Heat committed 17 turnovers Sunday, including nine by center Alonzo Mourning. They settled for -- and missed -- too many long-range jump shots. And, more important to Riley, they showed little effort. "We didn't bring it," Riley said. "We didn't bring it physically, and we didn't bring it mentally. And if you don't bring it as a team, you're going to get it." One of Riley's main evaluations of game tapes is to look for his team's effort on each play. In Miami's 77-76 overtime victory in Game 3, Riley said his team had 51 "effort plays" in the fourth quarter alone. He graded his players at 95 percent effort -- a season high. They dropped into the 70-percent range throughout Game 4. "I'm not going to try to explain it anymore," he said. "I'm not going to try to teach it anymore. Today I'm disgusted; tomorrow I'll start coaching again." Game 5 is Wednesday night in Miami. "Every game we've played thus far, the team that has lost has come back with that little edge, and that's been the difference," Knicks forward Latrell Sprewell said. The Heat hope to continue that streak. "Nobody wants to lose, and everyone on this team was disappointed, because we felt we could have played better and the outcome could have been different," guard Jamal Mashburn said. "[Riley] was annoyed, just like we all were annoyed. There was a little bit of a short fuse there, and everybody was on the same page." The Heat don't expect to make any major changes for Game 5; they're just hoping for better execution. Point guard Tim Hardaway, hobbled with a sore left foot, will continue to play -- and start. Hardaway is shooting 8-for-30 (27 percent) from the field in the series, including 4-for-17 from 3-point range, and has 18 assists. His mobility is limited, in transition and on defense. Hardaway met with Riley for about 10 minutes after Monday's session. Neither would comment on the meeting, but Riley defended Hardaway's play and presence on the court. "Tim is absolutely playing as courageously as he can. Despite what people think, he has been a positive for us," Riley said. "We need him. We need his heart. We need his savvy. "He means too much to this franchise to be thought of as a liability. We're working our way around it. He didn't make nine turnovers, and he didn't miss four free throws, so I would not be pointing fingers at Tim Hardaway." Hardaway had nothing to do with Charlie Ward reeling off the Knicks' final nine points, either. Rookie Anthony Carter was on the floor at the end of the game, and afterward he called Ward's baskets "garbage points." "I don't see how," said Chris Childs, the Knicks' other point guard. "We were up [five points] when Charlie made all the big plays, and they were all against him. He was guarding him, so what's it say about his defense?" Added Ward, who scored a career playoff-high 20 points: "I don't care what it may be. As long as we win, it can be garbage all day."
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