Pat Riley was capable of establishing a team culture and building a championship contender, that's a fact.
The Clippers' misery stemmed not only from sharing a city with the Lakers but also from entrusting their team to someone destined for misfortune.
You could lavish praise on Elgin Baylor for his rookie season stats with averages of over 25 points and 15 rebounds, for scoring 71 points in a single game in his second season, or for averaging 34.8 points and 19.8 rebounds in his third year. His individual skills were preposterously strong, but... he just wasn't destined to win championships.
Even as a general manager, the story was the same: letting him manage a team was like letting your wife, who brake with her left foot, accelerate with her right foot, and turns on the wipers at the first sign of trouble, drive at night—it's constant fear.
