Did the Heat also do it? Hardaway claims Riley once tried to bypass the salary cap: the league discussed suspending him for a year

On September 11th Beijing time, former NBA star Tim Hardaway expressed his opinion on a podcast regarding Leonard and the Clippers being investigated. Here is what Tim Hardaway said —

“If you have the capability to do that, then just do it. If you can slip by unnoticed, then slip by unnoticed. But I’m telling you — there’s always some truth behind rumors. As soon as the NBA determines you violated the rules, they will definitely target you and won’t let you off.”

“I’ve heard some rumors, just like many others have — this kind of (salary cap circumvention) has actually existed for a long time. As far back as the 1980s and 1990s, this was pretty common. The league has a salary cap restricting how much you can pay players, but there are always people trying to find ways around it. The key is just not getting caught red-handed!”

Then, Tim Hardaway dropped a bombshell. “Let me tell you something — back in the day, Pat Riley wanted to offer two players contracts worth over $20 million a year. The league officials asked, ‘What are you thinking? You still have other players to re-sign, how can you offer that much? Absolutely not! If we find out you privately promised these two players something, you’ll be suspended, the team will lose certain rights, and fines will follow — basically a whole bunch of penalties waiting for you’ — that was in 1996.”

In 1996, Riley’s Heat team was investigated by the league for allegedly violating rules with contracts offered to Juwan Howard and Alonzo Mourning. Eventually, the league declared Howard’s contract invalid, while Riley insisted the team’s actions were within the rules.

“At that time, Riley had no choice but to cancel the contract, fearing suspension for himself and fines for the team. The league even discussed suspending him for an entire season, not just 50 games — a full year ban,” Tim Hardaway said.

“Personally, I support players earning more money. When I see someone getting a big paycheck, I’m happy for them. I truly am, because you never know when your performance will decline, when you might get injured, or when you might no longer be able to play. There are a couple of players — like Isaiah Thomas and DeMarcus Cousins — who were waiting for big contracts but got injured before they could get them.”

“It’s really unfortunate; they deserved those big contracts. So, when you have the chance to get paid, take it, no matter how. Of course, if you get caught violating rules, it’s going to be ugly... very ugly, which is indeed regrettable. But if you can get away with it, then go for it — that’s my attitude.”