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Pat Riley often gets compared to “The Godfather” in NBA circles for his uncanny ability to make offers other teams can’t refuse. The Miami Heat president was back at his mahogany negotiating desk on Thursday, wheeling and dealing with a championship in mind.
The Heat acquired two major pieces at the trade deadline: Victor Oladipo and Nemanja Bjelica. Both impact players are projected to join Miami’s starting five and transform the Heat into an instant contender in the Eastern Conference. Oladipo, a two-time All-Star, is averaging 21.2 points per game who has a lethal outside jumper (34.8% career mark from deep). He’ll join Kendrick Nunn in the backcourt, with Goran Dragic still on the shelf.
“I think he’s a flat-out scorer,” Riley said of Oladipo. “Victor brings you the whole package. If you go back and look at his stats and all the things that he did prior to his injury, the guy can be a catch-and-shoot 38, 39 percent three-point shooter as well as being a slasher and a driver and a cutter and a defender.”
Meanwhile, Bjelica takes on the Kelly Olynyk role who was sent to the Houston Rockets in the Oladipo deal. Riley called him a “facsimile” of Olynyk and praised the Heat’s depth following their deadline moves. Bjelica, nicknamed “Belly” by Riley, averages 8.0 points per game while shooting 38.8% from deep for his career. Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra now has a lot of options on both ends of the floor.
“We have a lot of depth,” Riley said. “We have a lot of shooting. We have a lot of versatility. I think Spo will have a lot of options to be able to go [to] and be able to not experiment but use, so I think we kept everything that we needed in the cupboard to cover our defense and our offense and special situations.”
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Andre Drummond Remains Buyout Option
Miami might not be done adding to their roster. While LaMarcus Aldridge has emerged as the leading candidate to join Miami on the buyout market, don’t count out the team making a play for Andre Drummond. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst mentioned a potential move on The Hoop Collective Podcast.
Drummond has been working towards a buyout agreement with the Cleveland Cavaliers while “listening to pitches” from other teams. According to Yahoo! Sports, Drummond will speak with the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics, and Charlotte Hornets. The 6-foot-10 big man is averaging 17.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game but hasn’t played since Feb. 12.
Riley: ‘I’d Watch Out For Us’
The Heat (22-23) currently holds the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference standings. It’s impressive to see them that high considering the COVID-19 hurdles and injuries they have had to overcome. Riley knew he was at least one All-Star away — remember, they made a run at James Harden in January — and now he has his man in Oladipo. This is a team to be reckoned with in the NBA playoffs.
“I’d watch out for us,” Riley told NBA.com. “I’d watch out for anybody in the West that’s bunched up in the middle. So, there’s no real clear cut because of all the conditions, I think, that are out there that could change the equation, especially in the playoffs, if something happened from a health and a protocol standpoint as far as COVID goes. I like our chances.”
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