The Doc Rivers Reckoning
For much of his time as an NBA coach, Doc Rivers has faced criticism for his collapses in the postseason. (Andrew D. Bernstein/Getty Images)
Doc Rivers, head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers, is currently ranked No. 42 in all-time playoff winning percentage, with a win-loss record of 98-94 in the NBA playoffs. A former NBA Champion as coach of the Boston Celtics in 2008 and recipient of the 2000 NBA Coach of the Year award while with the Orlando Magic, Rivers has been one of the NBA’s most recognizable faces on the sidelines for two decades.
Since his departure from Boston in 2013 to take the reins of the Los Angeles Clippers, Rivers’ leadership, coaching ability and front office savvy have all been called into question by fans on numerous occasions. This has led many to wonder just how much of a negative impact he has had on the success of his players and teams post-Celtics. Recent comments made by two former players of Rivers during his time in Los Angeles, Josh Smith and Sindarius Thornwell, have only added fuel to this fire.
Rivers failed to lead the 2020 Clippers to the Western Conference Finals, leading to him stepping down. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty)
Shortly following the 76ers’ loss in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series with the Atlanta Hawks, Smith took to his Instagram story to say his peace on Rivers’ coaching style and his propensity for discrediting his players and colleagues. Smith, who played for the Clippers in 2015, referenced Rivers’ comments after his exit from the Clippers, where he said that the team’s usage of in-game adjustments was not “going to be much different” with Tyronn Lue taking over his duties, a notion that has been proven incorrect in the 2021 playoffs. Smith also took personal shots at Rivers in his vulgar rant, making reference to Rivers’ wife allegedly almost leaving him.
While Smith has not been on an NBA team since 2017, it’s hard to believe that his sentiments aren’t shared amongst any other former players of Rivers’.
His track record in the postseason has been terrible since he left Boston, where he was blessed with two generational players in Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to form the first modern big three along with Ray Allen, and his handling of the Clippers in their “Lob City” years has garnered him little good faith from fans.
In addition to coaching the Clippers from 2013-2020, he also served as the team’s president of basketball operations from 2014-2017. With a number of questionable personnel decisions under his belt, along with years of playoff disappointments, the Clippers’ collapse in the second round against the Denver Nuggets in the 2020 playoffs was the last straw for Rivers, who parted ways with the team.
A common criticism of Rivers has been the lack of young talent seeing real growth or playing time under his supervision. This oversight has been further called into question due to the impact of some younger Clippers players on the postseason at the moment, most notably Terance Mann.
Outside of the core of Lob City, the only young Clippers to receive significant roles on the team under Rivers were Ivica Zubac and Doc’s own son, Austin Rivers. One young player who felt spurned by Rivers’ lack of attention was Sindarius Thornwell. The 48th pick of the 2017 NBA Draft, Thornwell spent two years between the Clippers and their G-League affiliate.
“Wish Doc let me hoop like Lue let Mann,” Thornwell tweeted on June 24, 2021, referencing Mann’s breakout game against the Utah Jazz. Thornwell quickly clarified that he and Rivers maintain a good relationship and that he has nothing but positive things to say about Rivers, however another tweet of his from later that night appeared to be an indictment of the franchise under Rivers’ rule: “All I’m saying is I ain’t never played basketball and had [to] look over my shoulder until I got to the clips,” he added.
With the Clippers advancing to their first Western Conference Finals in franchise history just one year after Rivers’ exit, it is obvious why many would consider how much of the team’s previous failures have been due to the performance of Rivers. These considerations have been exacerbated by the early playoff exit of Rivers’ new team, the 76ers, in just his first year in Philadelphia.
Rivers is the only coach in NBA history to come out on the losing end of multiple series in which his team led 3-1; this has been the case for Rivers on three separate occasions. He is famously the alleged reason that Tim Duncan did not sign with the Magic in 2000 to team up with Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady, due to Rivers’ strict policy of not allowing players’ family members to utilize the team’s plane. His tenure in Orlando otherwise was uneventful, as the team never passed the first round of the playoffs.
Despite criticism from Boston fans and media, Rivers did lead the Celtics to an NBA Championship in 2008 in just their first season with Garnett and Allen.
With new challenges facing him in Philadelphia, Rivers will likely look to Joel Embiid as the team’s leader on the court. (Jesse D. Garrabrant/Getty Images)
While his seven years with the Clippers were the most successful in the team’s history, that’s not saying much, and the era will be looked back on as one that failed to live up to expectations. And, now, he has inherited a young superstar in Joel Embiid along with the conundrum that is Ben Simmons in post-Process Philadelphia.
How Rivers can navigate the waters of future postseasons with the Sixers will have a huge impact on his legacy as a coach, and with him being under contract until 2025, he will have plenty of time to either rehabilitate that legacy or to further erode it.
