LOS ANGELES \u2014 Technically, this is the Miami Heat\u2019s final visit of the season to Los Angeles. In reality, expect a sizable Heat delegation back in February.<\/p>\n
As the Heat move on from Southern California after games\u00a0Sunday night against the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> and Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers<\/a>, coach Erik Spoelstra was asked about an impending honor for one of the Heat\u2019s own.<\/p>\n On Feb. 22, Heat president Pat Riley will be honored with the unveiling of a statue in Star Plaza in front of Crypto.com Arena for his championship work as coach of the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s.<\/p>\n There, the monument to Riley\u2019s Lakers success will be placed alongside those of Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and other Lakers legends.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, I could go on and on, but my father, obviously, has had the biggest impact on me in my life,\u201d Spoelstra said of Jon Spoelstra, a longtime former NBA executive, \u201cbut Pat has had the second-biggest impact, certainly professionally, but also in life. He\u2019s the greatest mentor that I\u2019ve had. And he continues to be that, not only for me but for so many in the organization.\u201d<\/p>\n The Riley commemoration in front of the Lakers\u2019 arena will come a day after the Heat host the Memphis Grizzlies at Kaseya Center, amid the two-day break in the schedule that is followed by a Feb. 24 road game against the Milwaukee Bucks.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel so grateful that I\u2019ve had an opportunity to work for him for 30 years,\u201d Spoelstra continued of Riley, who sat in the stands behind the Heat bench at Cryto.com Arena on Sunday night, when the Heat lost 130-120 to the Lakers. \u201cHe\u2019s guided me through a lot of ups and downs. But we\u2019re really thrilled that he\u2019s finally getting that statue.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving the court named after him in Miami is totally fitting. Miami\u2019s been a football town for so many years. And when Pat took over, all of a sudden it\u2019s become a basketball town. That\u2019s the kind of visionary leader he is.\u201d<\/p>\n Spoelstra said the respect for the scope of Riley\u2019s work should resonate both then and now for the 80-year-old Heat patriarch.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s one of a kind,\u201d Spoelstra said. \u201cHe\u2019s an absolute force of nature, and he still is. He\u2019s every bit of that force of nature right now.\u201d<\/p>\n Riley will become the eighth Lakers legend honored with a statue in Star Plaza, with others including Elgin Baylor, Jerry West, Shaquille O\u2019Neal and broadcaster Chick Hearn.<\/p>\n Still going<\/p>\n With his 31-point performance Sunday against the Lakers, Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. continues to thrive in his role as sixth-man.<\/p>\n For Jaquez, it is part of an ongoing bounceback from an uneven second season following his All-Rookie performance in 2023-24.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that\u2019s part of my role in this team as that sixth man to infuse life and energy, give the team a spark, whatever they need, or throw gas, be the gas that we throw on the fire,\u201d he said after the Lakers game, repeating a phrase he often has used over these first two weeks of the season.<\/p>\n \u201cI take that role very seriously, and that\u2019s my approach when I go in too, when I get subbed in.\u201d<\/p>\n Recruiting trail<\/p>\n Having last month been named Team USA coach for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Spoelstra was questioned ahead of the Lakers game about whether he already is on the recruiting trail, specifically asked about Lakers guard Austin Reaves.<\/p>\n Spoelstra said it was too early in the process to consider the Olympic roster, but did follow up about Reaves, who he worked with at the 2023 World Cup in the Philippines, as an assistant on Steve Kerr\u2019s USA Basketball staff.<\/p>\n \u201cI really enjoyed my time working with him as an assistant coach on the World Cup team,\u201d Spoelstra said. \u201cWhat an experience that was, and it was humbling. The FIBA game was different and I think that was really important for all of us to go through that as a coaching staff to prepare us for the Olympics the next year.<\/p>\n \u201cBut Austin, he was a joy. I mean, he brings a gym to life. He was a crowd favorite over there and had some great moments. He\u2019s a competitor as well and you have to love that about him. What he\u2019s doing this year is really remarkable.\u201d<\/p>\n Reaves then scored 26 points Sunday night against the Heat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LOS ANGELES \u2014 Technically, this is the Miami Heat\u2019s final visit of the season to Los Angeles. 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