All?of it was interesting even if little was illuminating -- Riley is?the master at that.

Much of it will get repeated in Dave Hyde's column, Ira Winderman's blog, etc.

I'll break some of it up over the next few days, to create some topics to get us through this slow stretch.

First things first.

Riley was asked about getting Dwyane Wade to sign an extension this offseason.

"Absolutely, we would love to get a commitment," Riley said. "He's irreplaceable. Whatever we can do to try to make it happen, we will. He has a right to wait."

He does, and he might.

And my concern is that New York will begin to look even more tempting. A coach he likes. The biggest stage. He can the guy who can bring Basketball back to Madison Square Garden, which will put him on billboards all over midtown Manhattan. That's the one way he can upstage LeBron James, if LBJ stays in Cleveland, as is likely.?And the Knicks have enough cap and tax flexibility that they can surround Wade with enough talent to compete.

That's why there's some justification for fast-forwarding the process to get Wade's commitment.

The Heat has only a couple of attractive chips. That's Udonis Haslem's expiring contract, and Michael Beasley's promise. (The expiring contracts of Mark Blount and Jermaine O'Neal could become chips sometime during the season, for a time looking for cap space.)

Riley was asked if Beasley is untouchable.

"I would think so, in my mind," Riley said.

And then he hedged.

"But you never know what can come from outside," Riley said.

Let's say the Raptors offer Chris Bosh this summer.

That's when Riley needs to consult with Wade, as he consulted with Wade before the Jermaine O'Neal trade was done and Wade said to "go for it" because he would "make it work."

If Wade approves, then Riley needs to ask for a signature on an extension as a condition. And he would need to get the same commitment from Bosh.

Then you try to supplement the team in 2010 with starting-quality players who may fall to your mid-level exception -- and if the free agent class is as good as many expect, a couple of those players will be available. You then fill out the team, as you did in 2005 and as the Celtics did last year, with guys who are willing to take the minimum to be part of a championship run.

Riley cemented his legacy with the championship here. He has equity in the franchise, but his contract is up in 2010, and he really could leave at any time.

He doesn't?need to win another title during his time here.

But he doesn't want to be the guy who lost Dwyane Wade either.

So I suspect that will?desire will?guide all of his decisions, that there will be open communication with Wade, and that if Beasley is traded for Bosh or some?developed star of that ilk,?Wade's commitment will be part of that package deal.

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