LOS ANGELES — LeBron James sat alone on the Lakers’ bench during halftime, before the team’s meeting, as he listened to Magic Johnson’s soliloquies about Pat Riley. Earlier, the Lakers honored Riley with a statue in Star Plaza at Crypto.com Arena. Later, the Lakers fell to the Boston Celtics on Sunday.
James wanted to pay respects to Riley, not just the man who coached the “Showtime” Era Lakers, but also the front office mastermind behind the Big Three in Miami, turning James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh into a brief powerhouse that reached four straight NBA Finals and won two titles.
James is in his eighth season in Los Angeles – double the time the 41-year-old spent in Miami – but both Riley and the Lakers star reminisced over their time together from 2010-2014 on Sunday, complete with a pregame hug.
“Listen, he’s one of the all-time greats to ever have been a part of this league,” James said. “Not only player, coach, executive, front office, everything. Obviously, what he did here for the Lakers organization in the ’80s goes without saying and rightfully so, him having a statue outside this building. Obviously, I spent four years with him. I have the utmost respect for him, for his family and everything.”
But if you ask Riley, still the Heat president at 80, he acknowledged Sunday that he dreamt of what might have been, the potential for a decade of that trio from the 2003 NBA Draft class suiting up together in Miami. Riley, more than most league executives, understood that when James decided to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014, where he began his NBA career, that it was just “the business in the NBA.”
Players have their opportunity to test the market and find their best fit. James, who was 29 following a 2013-2014 season in which the Heat fell to the San Antonio Spurs in the Finals, chose his new home. After four more Finals appearances (and one title) with Cleveland, he left for Los Angeles in 2018.
“I wish him nothing but the best,” Riley said, “But, oh, I’m going to be selfish here and say, I wish I had him for another six or eight years. Would’ve been great, but we’ll never know.”
While many observers thought Miami’s salary cap situation at the time James departed presented serious challenges to future title contention, Riley clearly thinks those obstacles wouldn’t have been a match for James’ brilliance.
“We had finally put together what I thought could become a dynasty, (and) it was,” Riley said. “Four trips to the Finals in a row, two world championships, it was an incredible run. And as a coach and as somebody who really thought about how to build that particular team, I saw something that could have lasted eight to 10 years. But I understood.”
James, when told about Riley’s comments about those Heat teams, said it’s human nature to think about the “what could have been.” The four-time league MVP added that his four years in Miami alongside Wade – who spoke during Riley’s statue unveiling on Sunday – and Bosh provided him with “great memories.” But James also turned to the reality of where he is in 2026, still playing – unlike his Big Three peers – and averaging 21.7 points per game for the Lakers (34-22).
“It would’ve been interesting to see what could have happened,” James said. “The four years that we had was great. … I also would’ve never gave myself another 12 years to be playing this game either. So that’s another story.”
When it comes to Riley, who had moved into the front office full-time and ceded the Miami bench to Erik Spoelstra before James’ arrival, James credited the Heat organization with providing him with the tools to win a championship, something James added that he didn’t feel was possible early in his career with Cleveland.
“I felt like I knew how to play the game and I just felt like they could possibly put me in a position where the goals that I had [could be achieved] and I was able to accomplish that,” James said.