Gilbert Arenas Says Pat Riley’s Heat Lost Purposefully To Win a Lottery Pick

The Charlotte Hornets knocked out the Miami Heat during the 2026 Play-In Tournament, but former three-time NBA star Gilbert Arenas has a theory about why the Heat lost — and it implicates Pat Riley directly. Arenas, who is best known for his time with the Washington Wizards, recently spoke up about Heat center Bam Adebayo sitting out the game after he hurt his back in the second quarter.

Arenas believes that the Heat's loss was not a natural occurrence, but a planned decision to secure a favorable lottery pick for the 2026 NBA draft. The former Wizards star notes on the
The LaVar Ball Show that Heat president Pat Riley asked Adebayo to sit out the remainder of the game so they could willingly lose.

"I didn't like what they did with the Bam (injury)," Arenas said. "You really thought Bam's butt was hurting for him to sit out in the game? They lost that game, so they can get a lottery pick. ... They needed a lottery pick over there. He was never coming back in the game...Pat Riley walked his a** in there and went, 'Ay, you better sit your a** down. We lose this game, we got a lottery pick!"

Early in the second quarter, LaMelo Ball pulled Adebayo's left ankle, resulting in the Heat star falling on his bottom. Adebayo did not return, allowing for a Hornets win. Arenas' comment was clearly humorous and does not hold any real evidence to back the claims Arenas made on The LaVar Ball Show.

Tanking is a league-wide problem, but the Heat's case raises a new question: did a star player sit out on purpose?. In the case of the Heat, their loss in the Play-In Tournament against the Hornets resulted in them securing the 13th pick of the 2026 NBA Draft. They used this pick to draft Tennessee forward Nate Ament.

Neither Riley nor Adebayo has admitted to tanking for the Heat. But the 13th draft pick for the Heat did not stay long with them, as he was traded along with others to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis.

Pat Riley Hints at Another Superstar Coming to Miami

Pat Riley pulled off one of the biggest trades of the summer. 10-time All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo is now set to represent the Miami Heat beginning the 2026-27 season. The Bucks agreed to a deal with Miami, receiving Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kel'el Ware, Kasparas Jakucionis, and several draft picks in exchange for Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis Jr.

While the magnitude of Giannis' arrival in South Beach is already huge, it seems that Riley isn't done yet. During a press conference dedicated to Antetokounmpo's Heat arrival, Riley teased the possibility of bringing in another superstar this summer.

"We landed the plane. There's another one we have to land."

Riley never mentioned who exactly they intend to bring in. However, speculations are flying about it being former Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James. Throughout the summer, the Heat have been one of the teams rumored to land James for the upcoming season.

James and Riley have a rich history together, after winning two championships during the early 2010s era. With Antetokounmpo now in the picture, it seems that Pat is ready to run it back and potentially form a big three with LeBron, Giannis, and Bam Adebayo.