Pat Riley

Biography

Entering his 12th season with Miami, HEAT President & Head Coach Pat Riley has established a standard of excellence within the franchise, both on and off the court, that has allowed the team to reach unprecedented heights and has positioned it as one of the most successful in the NBA. Never was that more evident then when Riley guided his group of "15 Strong" to the franchise`s first NBA championship in Dallas on June 20, 2006. After the game, Riley commented that he had packed one suit, one shirt and one tie for the trip to Dallas, what he brought back to Miami was one championship, fulfilling a vision he spoke about when arriving in Miami in 1995.

Riley`s resume is filled with many milestones during an NBA career that spans 38 years as a player, assistant coach, head coach, administrator and broadcaster and has produced seven NBA championships. He has compiled a 1,151-589 (.661) all-time record guiding the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and the Miami HEAT during a 22-year head coaching career that is one of the most impressive in all of sports. His 1,151 regular season victories trail only Lenny Wilkens and Don Nelson on the NBA`s all-time list. His 171 postseason victories rank second in NBA history, just seven behind Phil Jackson. His 278 postseason games coached rank first all-time in the league. His five NBA championships as a head coach tie him with John Kundla for the third highest total in NBA history. Riley has averaged over 52 wins per season in his coaching career. His .661 winning percentage in regular season play and 1,740 games coached both rank sixth all-time in the NBA and his .615 postseason winning percentage ranks ninth all-time in the league annuals. In 1996-97 as the NBA celebrated its 50th Anniversary, Riley received one of the highest honors bestowed upon an NBA coach when he was named one of the Top 10 Coaches of All-Time by a panel of media who regularly cover the league. Simply put, Riley is a winner.

No matter the odds, "getting the job done" has never been a problem for a person who has seen winning from all angles. As a youthful role player for the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers, Riley earned the first of his seven NBA championship rings. He claimed another as an assistant under Lakers coach Paul Westhead in 1979-80. The New York native collected four more titles for the Lakers as the team`s top man in 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988. Eighteen years later, he guided the HEAT to their first NBA Championship, his fifth as a head coach. The 18-year span between championships as a head coach established an NBA record. His teams have advanced to the NBA Finals nine times and the Conference Finals on 12 occasions. As a head coach, he has captured 17 divisional championships, nine conference championships and five NBA titles. He has been honored as the NBA Coach of the Year on three occasions, the only coach in NBA history to receive the award with three different teams. Riley has also captured NBA Coach of the Month honors a league-record 10 times. His 20 total postseason appearances as a head coach are tops in league history, one more than Hall of Fame coach Red Auerbach and his string of 19 consecutive postseason appearances as a head coach from 1982-2001 set a league record for consecutive postseason appearances. Riley has also served as a head coach in nine NBA All-Star games.

Always recognized as one of the league`s best coaches, Riley continues to work his magic in the front office as well. During his tenure leading the HEAT, he has brought excitement to the organization by managing to pull off some of the biggest blockbuster trades in the NBA. Those trades have netted the HEAT All-Stars Shaquille O`Neal, Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway and Eddie Jones. Riley also made trades to acquire talented players Brian Grant, Jamal Mashburn and Anthony Mason who all made big contributions to the HEAT`s success. Prior to last season, he once again made headlines throughout the league as he helped engineer the largest trade in NBA history, a five-team, 13-player blockbuster, in which the HEAT obtained All-Star forward Antoine Walker from Boston and point guard Jason Williams and swingman James Posey from Memphis, all key contributors in the HEAT`s first NBA championship.

Along with his wife, Chris, Riley has been involved with numerous charity and community service projects throughout his career. They founded The Miami HEAT Family Outreach in 1997 which has raised over $5 million for the South Florida community and whose beneficiaries include Jackson Memorial Foundation`s Guardian Angels which supports the Holtz Center for seriously ill children, and SafeSpace which is a domestic violence shelter for women and their children. They are also involved in the Pediatric AIDS Foundation`s Kids for Kids organization which they started in 1992 in New York, and the YMCA in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami. For over 30 years the Riley`s have been actively involved with Boys and Girls Clubs of America. As a result of his efforts, Riley has received many prestigious awards, including the Miami Project Sports Legend Award in 1992, Boys and Girls Clubs Miami Person of the Year Award in 1998, and was honored by the YMCA Miami in 1998.

Riley is not only one of professional basketball`s winningest coaches, but his speeches before hundreds of corporations have earned him the title of "America`s Greatest Motivational Speaker." He has been rated by Success Magazine as "The best in his field." Riley has also completed an award winning 30-minute motivational video entitled "Teamwork" in which he applies his winning philosophies to business and life in general. In addition to being one of the most sought after motivational speakers in the country, Riley has authored two books, Show Time and The Winner Within.

Pat and his wife, Chris, have two children, James Patrick, and Elisabeth Marie.

Publications

The Winner Within is Pat Riley`s formula for success. It is a book about winning, leadership, mastery, change, and personal growth, based on understanding and controlling the shifting dynamics of a team - any team, whether it is a small company or a giant corporation, a family, city, or a group of athletes.

Titles

The Winner Within
Pat Riley is one of the brightest figures to ever coach in the NBA. He understands the psychology of teamwork and personal excellence and is a master at creating organizations whose achievements are greater than the sum of their parts. His speech shows business people how to put those principles to use. He gives audiences a vision of how to go above and beyond. He shows how to ride with the cycles of team change and make the most of every opportunity. Riley also cites ways for them to draw out their natural leadership abilities and further shows how one person can make a difference for an entire team.