Pat Riley says he expects to see Meyers Leonard back in an NBA jersey at some point ... telling TMZ Sports he believes the hooper's basketball career ain't over despite his previous use of an anti-Semitic slur.
The former Heat center has been out of the league since he was filmed on a live stream dropping the k-word ... but he's worked tirelessly to educate himself on the Jewish community since.
The 29-year-old famously met a bunch of kids at a synagogue in Boca Raton in June ... and also teamed up with an anti-hate organization to speak at a virtual seminar back in August.
Riley has clearly taken note of Leonard's actions ... and he guaranteed the 6-foot-10 basketball player would get a second opportunity in the NBA in the future.
"He's going to play basketball again," the Miami Heat president told us out at LAX. "He will."
Riley, though, said he wasn't sure if that opportunity would come from the Heat.
Leonard, who was a solid role player before his release in March 2021, told us in October he would love to come back to the Heat at some point.