Pat Riley Says Load Management Era Is No Better Or Worse, Just Different Mentality

The Miami Heat are no different from the rest of the NBA when it comes to maintenance days for players.

Forward Jimmy Butler has missed 15 games this season, with many of them attempting to preserve him for when things get real during the postseason. Even though Heat team president Pat Riley from the old-school, he understands how things change. Gone are the days of Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar playing all 82 games. Center Bam Adebayo was the last Heat player to play a full season in 2018-19. Duncan Robinson did it the following year in a shortened 72-game season.

Riley said during a recent interview ESPN the maintenance approach has allowed players like LeBron James to play at a high level for so long. James is set to break the league's career record in his 20th season.

"Back then, it was a badge of honor to play in every game. And so it was a different mentality," Riley said. "That was a badge of honor. And today, it's not. It's about rest, it's about taking care of everybody, it's about making sure you don't do too much or you might get hurt. It's a little bit more cautionary today, and I think that's good. But it's a different mentality."

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