In the lane

Pierce vs. Wade: Having played alongside both on championship teams, former Heat guard Ray Allen was asked by Sports Illustrated to weigh in on Paul Pierce’s television boast that the former Boston Celtics forward had a better career than just-retired Heat guard Dwyane Wade. “I just think it’s hard to compare” Allen said. “Those two guys are different players.” Allen said he takes issue with the need for such conjecture, which, in this case, began when Pierce was asked the question on ESPN’s studio show. “That doesn’t get him anywhere by saying that,” Allen said. “It’s great that you love yourself, but you just have to make sure that you pay homage to greatness when you see it. I think that moment was an opportunity to just celebrate D-Wade’s career and what he’s meant to the NBA.”

Matter of hate: Former Heat assistant coach David Fizdale referenced the outside hatred that engulfed the Heat when the Big Three of Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh were signed in the 2010 offseason and said he hopes to create similar animus now as New York Knicks coach when free agency begins. “Biggest thing I remember is how much people hated us,” Fizdale said in an interview with the team’s MSG Network. “I can’t wait. I miss being hated. I really do. Once we get this thing right, everyone’s going to hate us because it’s New York. They already hate us anyway.”

Flip sides: It was a week of contrasts for a pair of former Heat leading men. In New Orleans, former Heat interim coach Alvin Gentry was retained by incoming Pelicans General Manager David Griffin. Gentry benefited by a bit of history, with the two having worked together with the Phoenix Suns, where Gentry was an assistant and coach, and with Griffin then having interviewed Gentry for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ coaching vacancy in 2014. “We’re able to challenge each other,” Griffin said upon his New

Orleans appointment. Meanwhile, in Memphis, former Heat executive Chris Wallace was reassigned yet again by the Grizzlies, this time from general manager to scout. It has been a rollercoaster for Wallace since joining the Grizzlies prior to the 2007 draft, with this his second demotion. Wallace broke into the NBA under Jon Spoelstra, father of Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, with the Portland Trail Blazers, before then hiring Erik Spoelstra while Wallace served as Heat director of player personnel.

Dooling honored: Former Heat guard Keyon Dooling has been named the recipient of this year’s Norman Vincent Peale Award for Positive Thinking from the Blanton Peale Institute and Counseling Center. Dooling, who has chronicled mental-health issues that impacted his NBA career, currently is the player-wellness counselor for the National Basketball Players Association. A Fort

Lauderdale native, Dooling, 37, wrote a piece last year in The Players’ Tribune that stressed, “If you are hurting, get some help.”