Miami Heat Coach Pat Riley dishes on the next year

MIAMI?

? Offering atypical candor and forthright insight, Miami Heat President Pat Riley early Friday morning clarified several aspects of the team's offseason direction.

? Speaking in the wake of Thursday's NBA Draft, Riley touched on issues not previously addressed amid the team's championship celebration.

?? -- He said the team plans to guarantee the 2012-13 salary of backup center Dexter Pittman by Saturday's deadline.

? "He's going to do a lot of work and we're going to give him a good shot," Riley said. "Big guys, especially when you draft them late, it's a two- or three-year project."

??That could leave as many as three centers under guaranteed contract, including Joel Anthony and possibly Ronny Turiaf, who has a Saturday deadline to invoke his 2012-13 player option in advance of Sunday's start of free agency.

?? -- He said the team does not plan to use its "amnesty" clause this offseason, which would have enabled the team to avoid a luxury-tax payment with the release of a player under contract.

??That decision bodes well for the possibility of a return by Mike Miller, with Riley saying the 3-point specialist would first pursue an aggressive offseason rehabilitation program before considering back surgery.

??? "He has been examined," Riley said. "There hasn?t been any real prognosis. We are going to treat it and rehab it before the doctor makes a final decision. Mike is going to go through a summer of real rehabilitation."

?? -- He said he has no plans to step down in the wake of his latest championship, as some had speculated.

? "I hope it's just the beginning for me, in building this team. I hope this team has a long run," he said. "My job is to keep adding pieces to it."

?? -- He said the Heat already has specific players targeted for Sunday's start of free agency, without offering specifics.

? "We've got five or six guys earmarked," he said, "so we'll see how it goes."

?? He also said he would be open to consulting the team's stars about the Heat's free-agency direction.

?? "We definitely would run names by them," he said.

?? He indicated he is content with the tandem of Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole at point guard moving forward.

?? "We feel good with our point guard position, because we don't need a real prototypical point guard that needs the ball all the time," he said.

?? He also offered a hint that gives credence to potential Heat pursuit of Celtics free-agent guard Ray Allen.

?? "We want to find as much space on the floor with Chris and Dwyane and LeBron to operate," he said.

?? He said his staff already is in a back-to-work mode.

Source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sfl-miami-heat-pat-riley-s062812,0,5736128.story?track=rss

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