Biography

Former American basketball player Pat Riley was born in 1945 in Rome, New York, and spent his formative years growing up in Schenectady. That Pat would grow up to become a professional athlete is no surprise; his father was a minor league baseball player.

But Riley was drawn to basketball instead of baseball, and in high school he was one of his team’s most talented players, leading the school to victory on a number of occasions. In college, Pat Riley played football as well as basketball, and after graduation he was selected by the San Diego Rockets for the NBA draft and also drafted by the Dallas Cowboys for the NFL. Riley joined the Rockets, but was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he would play until his retirement in 1976.

Today, Pat Riley is best known as the Miami Heat’s team president, but he has also served as head coach of the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers. Over the course of his career, Pat has been named head coach nine times and is credited as one of the greatest coaches in NBA history. Most recently, Pat Riley brought the Miami Heat to NBA championships in 2012 and 2013. Off the court, Riley has become somewhat of a modern day pop culture icon, with a unique “gangster-like” appearance and strong personality.

Riley’s book chronicling his years as a coach for the Lakers, Showtime: Inside the Lakers’ Breakthrough Season, rose to become a New York Times bestseller upon its release in 1988. Riley also authored the book The Winner Within: A Life Plan for Team Players, and he is a frequent motivational speaker for various organizations and non-profits.