Alonzo Mourning reveals his bold prediction about the next Heat star

On a recent episode of "The OGs" podcast, Miami Heat legend Alonzo Mourning shared what makes the organization special, how Pat Riley is the reason for the Heat's longstanding rivalry with the New York Knicks and his bold prediction about Bam Adebayo that seems like it will come true.

Alonzo Mourning says LeBron can play in any era

LeBron James has been in the media for weeks due to talking heads talking about him and his son, Bronny. It is nice actually to hear an opinion about his game.

"LeBron would have played well in the '90s. Are you kidding me?" Mourning said.

But Mourning shared that he would meet LeBron at the rim.

"We would have laid some wood on him, though," Mourning said. "We'd have taken him out of the air several times. But he would have bounced right back because the way he's playing now is just unreal."

Seeing James receive respect from the older generation for a change is fantastic.

Zo told Pat Riley that Bam Adebayo would get his jersey retired in Miami

Udonis Haslem is the Heat's all-time leading rebounder (5,791). Alonzo Mourning is third at 4,807, and Bam Adebayo is second at 4,982. Adebayo has already passed Mourning. Haslem is next.

Haslem, a mentor to Adebyao, still wants to hold onto his rebounding record.

"I love him… but I don't love him that much," he said.

Haslem joked about not wanting Adebayo to break his records. But Mourning saw Bam's potential the moment the Heat drafted him.

"I said to Riley, one day we're going to be hanging his jersey in the rafters," Mourning said. "And Riley looked at me and I was like 'Watch what I tell you.' Because I think about humble beginnings with Bam. The man—single mother—grew up in the trailer park. He's hungry…..I said when he gets here this is the perfect organization for him because he's going to develop all the right work habits right off the bat. And eventually, that's going to blossom into the player he is."

That is quite the prediction from a Heat legend. Adebyao is on his way to making Mourning's bold claim come true.

Pat Riley started the Heat vs Knicks Beef

The Heat and Knicks have a rivalry that spans decades. Both fan bases have Pat Riley to blame for sparking the rivalry in the 90s, when Riley told the Knicks he was resigning via a fax and took the Heat job.

Riley joined the Heat in 1995 and a rivalry was immediately sparked. Knicks vs. Heat games were so physical and personal. As Mourning explained, these were two teams cut from the same cloth going head to head.

"Obviously, there was already a built-up rivalry," Mourning said. "All this was derivative of Pat Riley coaching in New York's next translation in Miami. So, he planted the seed of that type of mentality in New York.

"[Knicks coach] Jeff Van Gundy was his disciple," he continued. "He planted this in Miami as well, so we have two very similar teams playing the same way, which is why the scores were so low."

Haslem shared that Riley is the reason he is crazy. For many Heat fans, those Knicks games were stressful to watch since the Knicks won most of those games.

Mourning also shared how, when he left the Charlotte Hornets, he nearly ended up with the Knicks. Only Patrick Ewing told him to go to the Heat. A fun what-if.