Inside The Heat

Pat Riley Takes Strong Look At One-And-Done NBA Prospect In Los Angeles

Shandel Richardson

Nov 8, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Miami Heat president Pat Riley watches a game between the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-Imagn Images
Nov 8, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Miami Heat president Pat Riley watches a game between the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns at Talking Stick Resort Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-Imagn Images / Jennifer Stewart-Imagn Images
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Miami Heat team president Pat Riley was in Los Angeles Wednesday checking out some NBA draft prospects.

Illinois guard Will Riley was among those in attendance. Riley only played one season in college. He still has time to withdraw from the draft. The knock against him is physicality but the Heat could use a young scorer and playmaker of Riley's talents.

They have the No. 20 pick in the draft.

"I feel like what I need to work on is probably my physicality and getting a little bit more weight," Riley said. "Which 'm capable of doing because of, obviously, I did it when I was at Illinois. I came in at 170 and I left at 190. That's probably the main thing I've got to do to translate to the NBA."

The 6-foot-8 Riley was the Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year last season. He averaged 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists. He entered college as a potential one-and-done player after being rated among the nation's top 20 prospects.

"It feel like it helped me a lot, just seeing the guys how physical they were and how much stronger they were than me," Riley said. "It definitely helped me on the defensive end and on the offensive end."


He has interviewed with the Portland Trail Blazers, Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers among others since the Combine.

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star. TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here