Heat's Beasley defends heated exchange with Richardson

SAN ANTONIO - Michael Beasley isn't a rookie anymore. And he isn't backing down.

In a significant step in his NBA maturation, the second-year Miami Heat forward said Thursday he had no regrets about his heated exchange with Quentin Richardson during the third quarter of Wednesday's loss to the New Orleans Hornets, and felt did not deserve any admonishment from his veteran teammate.

"I'm not a rookie no more," Beasley said before his team faced the San Antonio Spurs at AT&T Center on New Year's Eve. "I felt like I was where I was supposed to be."

On the play in question, Hornets 3-point specialist Peja Stojakovic was left open for an uncontested successful attempt from beyond the arc.

Asked if he would have taken as demonstrative an approach last season, Beasley smiled.

"I would have shut up," the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft said. "He would have thought he was right."

While the Heat often is characterized as a young team, Beasley said it has reached the point where there simply has been too much input, albeit well-intentioned, from the veteran likes of Richardson, Jermaine O'Neal and others.

"A couple of weeks ago, we had our little talk and I told 'em, 'I'm all for suggestions and I'm for guys trying to help, but when everybody is telling me different things, that's when things kind of get mixed up,' " he said, having been mentored from his arrival by veteran power forward Udonis Haslem. "I told them I'd take their opinions, but I kind of only listen to U.D.

"I listen to everybody, but when it comes to mentoring and learning and doing what I'm supposed to do, Udonis is my main mentor. That makes it a whole lot easier."

Coach Erik Spoelstra said he had no issue with Beasley demonstratively addressing the play in question with Richardson on the bench during the timeout.

"I like those," he said. "We talked about it. There's got to be more of that, as long as it's done in a respectful way. I think the body language may have been interpreted wrong, because it was a healthy discussion, what they had.

"We talked about it in the film session. We need more of that as a young team. To tighten up our defensive rotations, there's got to be more communication."

Spoelstra said Beasley has earned the right to state his case.

"He's become a little bit more sure of where he's supposed to be," he said.

As it was, Beasley's place at the end of the game in New Orleans was on the bench, utilized for only six seconds in the fourth quarter of the 95-91 loss.

"It just happened that way," Spoelstra said. "I already talked to Michael not to look too much into it. We were down and had to change something with the dynamic."