Riley Resigns as Miami Coach

Hall-of-Famer names protege Spoelstra as replacement
By Jesse Andrews,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 28, 2008 10:33 PM CDT
Riley Resigns as Miami Coach
Erik Spoelstra smiles after being named the new Miami Heat head coach during a news conference.   (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

On the night of his last game as an NBA head coach, Pat Riley heard the final buzzer, looked straight ahead and briskly walked away. Deep down, he knew it was over. "I didn't have to look back," Riley said. "I know that's behind me." And now, Riley's past becomes Erik Spoelstra's future.

The Hall of Fame coach resigned Monday, although he'll remain team president. His first act as Miami's former coach was to choose its new one, and hired Spoelstra, a 37-year-old who started in the Heat video room in 1995 and now becomes the NBA's youngest coach. Riley was 36 when he first became a head coach. (More NBA stories.)

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