Riley in Career Hall of Fame, but 2008 Hall of Shame

Before I begin dissecting the atrocities of Pat Riley's 2008 campaign as coach of the Miami Heat, let's congratulate him on the inevitable Hall of Fame selection. With 5 NBA Championships as a head coach and 7 total, there isn't a man more deserving. He goes on the short list of Red Auerbach and Phil Jackson as the greatest coaches in NBA history.

That being said, his immortal status doesn't protect him from the wounds he inflicted on this year's team. It was a truly horrendous coaching job. Everyone knows it, but few have the courage to express it openly. Well I'm saying it right here.

Great coaches have been known to stumble over rebuilding projects. The most obvious case was Larry Brown and the 2005-06 Knicks. When they aren't winning, they don't know how to handle it.

Earlier this year, Riley rated his offseason executive performance as an F-. I actually disagree with him there (F- is for people like Isiah Thomas). There was little he could have done with the aging team he had, and he deserves an A+ for the Shaq trade (even though I like it on Phoenix's end too). As a coach, however, he didn't live up to his own HOF standards. Not even close.