Van Gundy quits as Heat coach; Riley expected to take job
By Ira Winderman
sun-sentinel.com
Posted December 12 2005, 8:24 AM EST
MIAMI -- Two years after stepping down as Heat coach, team president Pat Riley is on the verge of resuming the position.
The Heat has called an 11 a.m. Monday media conference at AmericanAirlines Arena, where Riley is expected to take over for Stan Van Gundy, who has led the Heat deep into the playoffs in his two seasons with the franchise.
Van Gundy, meanwhile, has resigned, a team source told the Associated Press around 9 a.m.
The Heat is 11-10 and in first place in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team on Sunday regained the services of Shaquille O'Neal, after the All-Star center missed the previous 18 games with a sprained right ankle.
Preliminary word was Van Gundy was stepping down due to personal reasons.
Riley stands third on the NBA's all-time victory list among coaches at 1,110, behind only retired coaches Lenny Wilkens (1,332) and Don Nelson (1,190). His career coaching winning percentage of .661 would put him third among active coaches, behind only Phil Jackson and Gregg Popovich.
Riley previously had vehemently denied that would include a return as coach in place of Van Gundy.
But Riley also has made it clear, with his offseason overhaul of his roster, that he would have a more active involvement with the team this season.
In the offseason, Riley traded swingman Eddie Jones and forward Rasual Butler and added guards Jason Williams and Gary Payton and forwards James Posey and Antoine Walker.
On the eve of the season, Riley said of having a more active involvement, "I built something here for 10 years. I sure as hell don't want to just walk away from it."
During that same period, Van Gundy said he believed Riley would remain solely in his front-office position.
"Bottom line is that we are all on the same page, and we are going forward with this team, a team that has the chance to be great," he said. "That is where our focus is."
Nonetheless, Van Gundy continued to work as the lone current coach toiling under a Hall of Fame-caliber sideline presence in his own front office.
Even with Riley only in the front office, Heat players had continued to refer to him as "coach."
"It's just a respect factor," guard Dwyane Wade said in the preseason, now given his first opportunity to play directly under Riley.
Van Gundy went 101-63 in his first two seasons as coach, guiding the Heat to the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2004 and within two minutes of last season's NBA Finals, before losing in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals to the Detroit Pistons.
Asked his thoughts on a possible return by Riley, former Knicks, Pacers and Spurs coach Bob Hill, now a Sonics assistant, said, "I don't think Pat would ever consider coming back unless that whole thing fell apart. In which case, I think everybody would understand that should be done."
Riley, though, had steadfastly denied the possibility.
"It absolutely undermines Stan, just the notion," he said before the start of the season. "The fact that I've won a lot of games, the fact that I coached a 22-year career, I'm here, I'm where I'm at. That's the typical reaction on the part of a lot of people."
Riley often has been regular at practice at AmericanAirlines Arena, watching from a folding chair well away from the action, retreating to his office before reporters can approach.
Asked about the Riley-Van Gundy dynamic, center Alonzo Mourning said before the season, "I think it's two men who are concerned about this organization. I think that's a bonus for us. I would like to think Stan would welcome Riles' input. I don't see any strain there at all."
But, in the next breath, Mourning said he understood the speculation, considering Riley had guided the Los Angeles Lakers to four championships earlier in his career, before his stops in New York and then South Florida.
"I see the controversy built up because of the fact there's a possibility of Riles coming back. That's big news for everybody," he said. "But I know Riles trusts Stan to do the job, otherwise he would have never put him there. At the same time, he knows in order for this organization to be successful, Stan hasn't really been there. Pat Riley has been there."
Ira Winderman can be reached at
iwinderman@sun-sentinel.com.
