Lakers, do we have cowards ?! Here comes the sensational reverse ...

NBA, Pat Riley backs off: "Star on us, the Lakers were better." When the word "asterisk" is used to refer to an NBA title, there is always an inevitable controversy. And if someone like Pat Riley utters that word, then it immediately becomes news. Speaking to the media after the end of the season, the Miami Heat president expressed his regret for not having been able to see his team in full during the Finals, thanks to injuries to Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic. And while underlining that the Lakers "beat us clearly", he added that "there will always be an asterisk, because with the two of them 100% we could have reached game-7". Words that were not particularly liked by the parts of Los Angeles and especially by Lakers fans, given that the "asterisk" is often used for the abnormal conditions with which a season shortened by the pandemic ended. Riley then wanted to point out what he meant, saying that his words were taken out of context: “The asterisk is close to the name of the Heat, not the Lakers. Their title is legitimate. Our defeat has an asterisk [due to injuries], but the Lakers were the better team. And that's that". Words that serve to soften the controversy, even if actually a full final would have been better for everyone - but injuries are part of the game, and Pat Riley knows this perfectly well.