What if Pat Riley never left?

phat_24 · Post #1 » by **phat_24** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 12:25 pm

I was thinking about this the other day. If he never left, how much would the course of Lakers' history have changed with him in a coaching position throughout the 90s and perhaps taking over GM duties from Jerry West after 2000?

How would he have done in the 91 NBA finals? Post-Magic era? Shaq and Kobe?

I became a fan at the start of 99-00 so for the veteran guys here, what are your thoughts?

popeye64821 · Post #2 » by **popeye64821** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 2:07 pm

Edit: Incoherent 10 year old's rant.

Emperor_Earth · Post #3 » by **Emperor_Earth** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 2:48 pm

@popeye64821 Re: Locked Threads
Positive correlation does not necessarily go hand in hand with causal effect.
Layman terms: Mods usually lock threads for other reasons such as: inflammatory dialogue. Just because certain types of threads tend to produce inflammatory dialogue and eventually thread locking does not mean that certain types of threads are immediate cause for locking.

@phat_24 Re: Pat Riley
Certainly Pat is a very charismatic leader who excels at bringing people together. What he isn't the best at, however, is dealing with decline. He's very opportunistic and his history reflects that. I think with him at the helm during our early 90s decline, we would have been perennial 6-8 seeds constantly pulling 1st-2nd round exits in the playoffs as his very nature wouldn't accept lottery bound teams.

We would never have gotten rebuilt. Instead, he would have applied quick fix after quick fix to try to bandage us into to be semi-relevant. We would be your modern day Hawks. Competitive on any given night, but odds of winning a chip would be bleak.

SALMIEN · Post #4 » by **SALMIEN** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 3:29 pm

Dont ever say if ( it opens doors for the devils)

Sedale Threatt · Post #5 » by **Sedale Threatt** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 3:50 pm

There would have been a mutiny at some point.

There was already a lot of resentment for his decision to hold a mini boot-camp during the layoff between the WCF and Finals in 89, possibly leading to the injuries suffered by Magic and Scott. By 90, when they flamed out against the Suns, it was pretty clear that everybody was sick of him, even Magic.

Which says something, considering Magic is one of the great competitors of all time. Not even he could take it any more. Riley was a great coach, but he didn't really know any other way but full-throttle, and that's only going to work for so long with the same group of people. So it turned out just about the only way it could.

Which was pretty awesome, frankly, in light of how the past decade has unfolded.

Gek · Post #6 » by **Gek** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 4:13 pm

BUT, LIKE, OMG WE COULD HAVE KOBE LEBRON WADE BOSH PAU STARTING LINE UP WITH ODOM AND BYNUM ARTEST AND MIKE MILLER BACK UPS! GREATEST TEAM EVAR!

LApwnd · Post #7 » by **LApwnd** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 4:37 pm

I didn't follow lakers till after he left so never knew what the deal was with his departure but given his track record after between knicks/mia, he seems like a pretty SHADY character.

Frantik · Post #8 » by **Frantik** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 4:52 pm

G=K wrote:BUT, LIKE, OMG WE COULD HAVE KOBE LEBRON WADE BOSH PAU STARTING LINE UP WITH ODOM AND BYNUM ARTEST AND MIKE MILLER BACK UPS! GREATEST TEAM EVAR!

laduane1 · Post #9 » by **laduane1** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 5:15 pm

When Pat left. Both sides were ready for a new direction. Pat pushed the Lakers hard for 9 years and players were getting older and they did not need the total push like they were rookies. Hamstring problems popped up during the playoffs to Magic and Scott. Running during practice was a must and it wore down player. That and other stuff made the decision of Pat leaving the right decision. He did all he could do in LA. 5 championships, 9 times to the finals, Pacific division titles almost every year. It was showtime and we all loved it.

Jase · Post #10 » by **Jase** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 5:56 pm

G=K wrote:BUT, LIKE, OMG WE COULD HAVE KOBE LEBRON WADE BOSH PAU STARTING LINE UP WITH ODOM AND BYNUM ARTEST AND MIKE MILLER BACK UPS! GREATEST TEAM EVAR!

On that note, psychedelic avatar.

Wavy Q · Post #11 » by **Wavy Q** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 9:17 pm

i still miss Riley which is why i dont hate the super friends team, but idk, just wasnt the right fit anymore

Dr Aki · Post #12 » by **Dr Aki** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 10:49 pm

i doubt shaq would have stayed beyond a few years

no three peat

Cookin Baskets · Post #13 » by **Cookin Baskets** » Thu Sep 2, 2010 11:03 pm

Pat Riley is in 80s he had his glory days back with Magic. He wouldn't have had his stops in New York or Miami. Miami would have not won a title in 2006 if he didn't work his magic bringing in Shaq or drafting Dwyane Wade. I think Lakers fan should ask the question what if Phil Jackson left permanently?

DEEP3CL · Post #14 » by **DEEP3CL** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 1:39 am

Sedale Threatt wrote:There would have been a mutiny at some point.

There was already a lot of resentment for his decision to hold a mini boot-camp during the layoff between the WCF and Finals in 89, possibly leading to the injuries suffered by Magic and Scott. By 90, when they flamed out against the Suns, it was pretty clear that everybody was sick of him, even Magic.

Which says something, considering Magic is one of the great competitors of all time. Not even he could take it any more. Riley was a great coach, but he didn't really know any other way but full-throttle, and that's only going to work for so long with the same group of people. So it turned out just about the only way it could.

Which was pretty awesome, frankly, in light of how the past decade has unfolded.

This statement here sums up the the end of this question. I think guys here that are mid to late 30's and early 40's would agree with this. Bottom line was this......Riles was burying himself and legend before he even left town. He was too compulsive and abrasive and got even worse once he got to New York.

Truth be told Riley probably burned us from winning at least 2 more titles with his "sell your soul to the devil" mentality he has yet to set himself apart from.

I don't hate Riles, but as I became older I've detached myself from thinking he was just this awesome genius. He's manipulative , cunning and deceitful....the man is a devil in human form period.

iamworthy · Post #15 » by **iamworthy** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 2:16 am

DEEP3CL wrote:
Sedale Threatt wrote:There would have been a mutiny at some point.

There was already a lot of resentment for his decision to hold a mini boot-camp during the layoff between the WCF and Finals in 89, possibly leading to the injuries suffered by Magic and Scott. By 90, when they flamed out against the Suns, it was pretty clear that everybody was sick of him, even Magic.

Which says something, considering Magic is one of the great competitors of all time. Not even he could take it any more. Riley was a great coach, but he didn't really know any other way but full-throttle, and that's only going to work for so long with the same group of people. So it turned out just about the only way it could.

Which was pretty awesome, frankly, in light of how the past decade has unfolded.
This statement here sums up the the end of this question. I think guys here that are mid to late 30's and early 40's would agree with this. Bottom line was this......Riles was burying himself and legend before he even left town. He was too compulsive and abrasive and got even worse once he got to New York.

Truth be told Riley probably burned us from winning at least 2 more titles with his "sell your soul to the devil" mentality he has yet to set himself apart from.

I don't hate Riles, but as I became older I've detached myself from thinking he was just this awesome genius. He's manipulative , cunning and deceitful....the man is a devil in human form period.

Whats up Deep. I pretty much understand the situation the way you and ST layed it out. I started a thread last year about How it was my understanding that Lakers should have won more titles during the riley era but due to the hard practices, injuries that were said to be caused from practices kept that from happening.

Sedale Threatt · Post #16 » by **Sedale Threatt** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 3:24 am

That's very possible. But you can also argue that Riley's toughness was a major reason in us beating Boston in 85, then repeating in 88. I'm not going to give a coach any more credit than a player, and Magic was the heart and soul of those teams.

But Riley's drive, when the audience was still receptive, was critical as well. So while it was undeniably time for him to go, you have to give him credit for what he helped the Lakers accomplish. It's hard to think of five titles in an extremely top-heavy league as underachievement.

ShowtimeFan · Post #17 » by **ShowtimeFan** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 5:46 am

What if I won the Lottery?

stunnar0b · Post #18 » by **stunnar0b** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 6:07 am

ShowtimeFan wrote:What if I won the Lottery?

you'll be seeing my ass court side every game if only

Sedale Threatt · Post #19 » by **Sedale Threatt** » Fri Sep 3, 2010 3:22 pm

ShowtimeFan wrote:What if I won the Lottery?

What if you didn't bother to post if you didn't have anything constructive to add?

stunnar0b · Post #20 » by **stunnar0b** » Mon Sep 6, 2010 12:18 am

Sedale Threatt wrote:
ShowtimeFan wrote:What if I won the Lottery?

What if you didn't bother to post if you didn't have anything constructive to add?

dude lighten up its the summer for crying out loud, you werent bashing other (Please Use More Appropriate Word) a** post so ease up