Miami's coup was a 'surprise' built on long-coveted goal of James, Wade and BoshThe three played together for the first time that summer in Japan at the World Championships. For the first week, they were sequestered without family or friends in Sapporo, Japan, in an attempt to build chemistry. But it wasn't just the players. Working as an intern for Team USA and getting to know the players was Nick Arison, the son of Heat billionaire owner Micky Arison.
Now, Nick Arison is a rising executive with the Heat. He was part of the team that recruited all three players this summer.
Los Angeles-based management company Creative Artists Agency decided to get into the basketball agent business. Seeing how influential they could be in the summer of 2010, CAA bought the agencies that represented James, Bosh and Wade. Bringing them all under one roof gave CAA huge control of the market and took down any barriers the three would have with negotiations.
The Knicks got most of the attention for moves to position themselves for James, especially when they traded away their best players for pennies on the dollar in an effort to clear the books. But Riley was just as passively aggressive in not spending, at one point last summer getting into a public battle with Wade, who was frustrated at the lack of additions to the roster.
It was a risk to mess with Wade as he headed for his own free agency, but Riley had been watching and doing research. He knew the three wanted to play together, and he knew he had a glamour destination to offer, a history of success and Wade. Riley crunched the numbers and thought he could get close to clearing three maximum salary spots to sign all three, or at least get so close that he could sell it.
Riley really put the plan into action last November. During a Cavs visit to Miami, Riley arranged a get together with Michael Jordan and James. Jordan, who was in town to do some Nike work with Wade, at the time did not own a majority of the Bobcats.
During the meeting, Riley talked to James about how more modern players should pay homage to Jordan. Riley always had led this effort, retiring Jordan's No. 23 in the rafters at AmericanAirlines Arena even though Jordan never played in Miami.
The Cavs knew about it, and while it seemed like it could be classic tampering, they decided not to make an issue of it -- mostly because the meeting technically wasn't about free agency.
After the game, and after seeing Jordan and Riley sitting together courtside, James made an emotional statement on the court that he was going to ditch jersey No. 23 out of respect to Jordan. In fact, he felt all players should stop wearing No. 23.
It was controversial and got headlines. Riley probably didn't care so much about the statement but how his conversation obviously influenced James. It likely gave Riley confidence that he could win James over by playing to his emotions when it came time for free agency.
That was why Riley was so amped up before his presentation to James in Cleveland a week ago. He packed up his seven championship rings, had his salary-cap specialists create displays to show how Florida taxes could save James money and brought along Alonzo Mourning to make an emotional pitch about how the team backed him up as he recovered from a kidney transplant.
It was also made known to James that the Heat would take care of his friends the same way the Cavs did -- special treatment at the arena, changing practice and travel schedules to allow for money-making late-night parties in various cities, and perhaps even hiring a James associate in a high-paying position in the organization.
This was nothing new for Riley. He made the same accommodations for Shaquille O'Neal and, to a lesser extent, Wade in recent years.
Wade flew with Bosh to Akron to meet at James' house in the last week of June. Still under contract with the Heat, Wade got the other two to the brink of a deal to join up.
All the players still met with teams just to make sure they wanted Miami. Wade and James were interested in Chicago, where there was a chance two of them could match up and play with rising star Derrick Rose.
James did talk with Bosh about the chance of playing in Cleveland, but Bosh resisted, and James seemed to be more attracted to teaming up with his friends than staying home.
The Bulls' chances were diminished for two central reasons. Wade wasn't willing to go to his own hometown. And the Bulls made it clear James' friends would not be given the privileges they were given in Cleveland or the high-paying jobs.
Bulls got balls.
In all seriousness good luck to him if he wants to give it a shot, far be it from any of us to say he doesn't have the right to try. But they don't need him and I don't like this chances.
