"Had to prove their manhood": When Pat Riley blasted the media for triggering the infamous '93 brawl between Suns and Knicks
The New York Knicks and Phoenix Suns were involved in a fiery brawl during the 1992-93 season which Pat Riley attributed in part to the media. While big-name players like Kevin Johnson, Greg Anthony and Doc Rivers were involved in the exchange, Riley believed the media narrative that had been put in place was partly responsible.
After the dust settled, several players were ejected and fined. That is when the finger-pointing commenced. While many of the Suns players looked to Rivers and Anthony for not being able to control their emotions, Knicks players pointed to Johnson for a hard shoulder that flattened Rivers late in the second quarter.
Riley, who was in his second year coaching the Knicks, believed Suns players were pushed to their limits by the media leading up to the game.
"The whole thing was perpetuated by a week-long barrage of media coverage on the Phoenix Suns, about how soft they were, the fact that an Eastern Conference team had beat them in five out of six games, that they weren't physical, and it was almost as though they had to prove their manhood," said Riley.
"They decided it was going to be against us," added Riley.
Going into the clash at the US Airways Center in Arizona, the matchup was promoted as one of the biggest games of the season. The Knicks came in with a 45-18 record and were looking for their 10th straight win. Phoenix had won 48 of their 63 games and had established themselves as the team to beat in the West.
Perhaps more interesting than their records, was their contradictory styles of play. The Knicks were known as a physical team that didn't shy away from confrontation. With Patrick Ewing's presence in the post, they relied on their defense to overcome opponents.
Meanwhile, the Suns boasted some of the league's most efficient scorers. Charles Barkley and Dan Majerle led the team in points, but there were a handful of players who could put up big numbers on any given night. That season, Phoenix finished with a league-best 113.4 points per game.
With neither team willing to back down in this heated encounter, the brawl was not surprising to Pat Riley. Six players were ejected and players received what were record fines for the NBA at the time.
Phoenix went on to win the game 121-92. They would go all the way NBA final that year, before eventually falling to a Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls team in six games.
Pat Riley went on to win 3 titles with the Miami Heat following his spell in New York
Pat Riley's teams were known for their physicality and the legendary coach took that same mentality over to Florida in 1995 after completing a four-year spell with the Knicks.
At the time, the Miami Heat had not made it out of the first round of the playoffs and were nowhere close to a championship. All that was about to change under Riley's leadership.
Pat Riley built a culture of hard work and toughness in Miami, firmly establishing the organization as one of the top teams in the East. In 2006, he went on to lead the franchise to its first-ever title, defeated by the Dallas Mavericks.
In 2008, the New York native pivoted to an executive role with the organization and would guide the Heat to two more championships in 2012 and 2013.