Doc Rivers Remains Quiet on Future With Celtics, Says He Would “Rather Not Say”

NESN

He’s Still Making His Decision

by Alison Smith on Sun, Jun 9, 2013 at 9:29PM

The current Boston Celtics team as fans know it remains in limbo. Amid reports that veteran Paul Pierce could be bought out of his contract with the Celtics, and that Kevin Garnett‘s future with the team hinges on Pierce’s status, the Celtics have one more major question mark when it comes to next year’s team. Head coach Doc Rivers has yet to confirm if he will be returning behind the Celtics’ bench next season.

Rivers had been silent in talking to reporters after the Celtics’ short postseason run — until Sunday night. Rivers told the Boston Globe that he needed to “detox” after the season and even apologized for being inaccessible to reporters.

He still did not give any indication about whether or not he will return for a 10th season, though president of basketball operations, Danny Ainge, has previously said that Rivers will return. When asked by the Globe if he is still in the decision-making process Rivers replied, “I’d rather not say.”

Even though he has been out of sight with the media, Rivers has been present for pre-draft workouts with the team and has discussed the upcoming season with Ainge. With the NBA draft approaching, Rivers has indicated that he will address the issue publicly “soon.” The Celtics finished the season third in the Eastern Conference with a 41-40 record before losing to the Knicks in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
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CSNE

Doc to Globe: 'Rather not say' if he's made decision to return

Danny Ainge said last month that Doc Rivers is returning to coach the Celtics next season.


More than a month after Celtics president of basketball operations said Doc Rivers would be returning to coach the Celtics next season, Rivers told the Boston Globe "I'd rather not say," when asked if he was still in the decision-making process about returning.


In a text-message exchange with the Globe on Sunday night, Rivers wouldn't offer any hints as to whether he'll return.

A lack of public announcement from Rivers following Ainge saying the coach would be back has led to speculation about Rivers' future in Boston.

Rivers himself has not confirmed that and with the Celtics season being over for five weeks, speculation has grown that the beloved coach is seriously considering stepping down.

He also has three years and $21 million remaining on the table and several NBA sources believe he would not hold the Celtics hostage for more than a month and then step down, especially with the number of qualified coaches dwindling by the week. There is speculation that Rivers and Ainge are discussing new parameters for the immediate future, including the fates of Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

With the draft in less than three weeks and the decision on the contract of Pierce necessary by June 30, Rivers is expected to make his final decision within weeks. He only promised that he would speak publicly about his situation “soon.”

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ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.........I'M GETTING TIRED OF THIS........HEY DOC EITHER YOUR IN OR GET THE HELL OUT....AND DON'T LET THE DOOR HIT YOU IN THE ASS!!!!!!

112288

I think I am envisioning from Looney Tunes the Coyote holding one of those black round bowling ball looking things with a lit fuse on the top.

I think this begins to tell the story as to what Ainge and the brain trust are thinking.

I think Danny is seriously looking to move Pierce with a sign and trade with a team or an outright buyout, and Doc is basically sitting back until something happens or does not happen.

If Danny cannot work a sign and trade, he will keep Pierce for one more year and Doc will comeback with all smiles.

To me Doc is a great "PLAYERS COACH" in that he knows how to deal with the modern professional NBA player. He is able to get through the ego part to bring the best out of a player..............however I do not think he is the best "STAT" coach in the league.........Doc had 3 guys that made Doc look good...............Tommy T........Lawrence Franks.........and coach Cliff.

Doc has made some poor coaching choices along the way but has been bailed by great ass't coaching and HOF players.

So if he is gone....perhaps its a good thing to start fresh, although the next coach will have to be a guy who can attract free agents.

112288

So, he's in town to watch the rookie pre-draft workouts but "doesn't want to say" if he's coming back?

"Curiouser and curiouser", said Alice.

I think, and this is strictly my gut speaking, he's lobbying for Danny to keep Pierce. He knows that if he leaves, KG retires. KG MIGHT stick around if Pierce is gone, depending upon who we get for him, but he is not going to learn a new coach's system at this point in his career. I believe he has only had 3 coaches in his entire career (Bill Blair (for a fraction of a season), Flip Saunders and Doc). He doesn't like change above him. Doc wants Pierce and is using this to get what he wants.

Pierce depends on Doc, KG depends upon Doc, Danny depends upon Doc.


bob


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Bobh,

That's what I'm thinking but suppose we get to June 30th and all DA has done is draft #16? There's nothing else DA has to do up until June 30th except draft is there? In the end, that being June 30th for all practical purposes, can't DA just hold out, make no moves and force Doc's hand before DA makes any major moves?

db

Also, Bobh, if Doc is having to lobby for PP and nothing has been decided, that means more than likely DA was leaning for the red button/nuclear option. Otherwise we wouldn't be having this conversation.

dbrown4 wrote:Bobh,

That's what I'm thinking but suppose we get to June 30th and all DA has done is draft #16? There's nothing else DA has to do up until June 30th except draft is there? In the end, that being June 30th for all practical purposes, can't DA just hold out, make no moves and force Doc's hand before DA makes any major moves?

db

Dbrown4,
I believe that June 30 is a deadline for decision on PP - whatever that decision might be.

AK

It really is becoming a melodrama, isn't it? It is obvious that Doc is holding this over Danny's head. Is he negotiating with TNT or ESPN while we wait? Who knows, but, it is a bit unfair since there are so many coaching positions out there and the good coaches may be gone by the time Doc makes his decision. This seems to be the first time that a split between Doc and Danny has become so obvious. Danny is dying to pull the trigger, what is stopping him? Doc? Wyc? His concience?

Interesting, but getting to be a story I am sick of reading about.

Rosalie

In general....Doc will never be paid the money $7M per year if he works for TNT or ESPN.

No if Doc leaves, he is looking at coaching or President position with an equity stake....like Bird is looking for with the Sca. Kings.


THINK BIG MONEY!

112288

I seriously doubt this is about money. I think Doc's considerations are:

• Will KG and Pierce be back

• Will the team be in rebuilding mode

• Burnout

• Whether he wants to move in a different direction -- team president, broadcasting, juggling chain saws, whatever

• Whether he wants to just take a break from basketball and spend more time with family, as he's said multiple times in recent years

My take is that his indecision is due to some or all of those are factors, not money.

Sherrod Blakeley's report on this soap drama.


SAN ANTONIO — The waiting game continues for the Celtics, who remain unsure if head coach Doc Rivers will be back next season.

A league source told CSNNE.com on Monday that Rivers' decision on whether he will return will not be based solely on whether Paul Pierce and/or Kevin Garnett are back in next season. Rivers' hesitation to verbally commit to next season has more to do with his uncertainty as to what type of team Danny Ainge, Boston's president of basketball operations, will give him to coach.

"No coach wants to go through a full-blown rebuilding process," said the source. "Doc's already done that, so he knows how tough that is for all involved. But to be asked to go through it twice? Any coach would pause for a minute before signing on to that."

Rivers' first year in Boston ended with the C's eliminated in the first round of the 2005 playoffs (the same point in which the 2012-13 campaign ended for the Celtics). What followed was a two-year decline that hurt in terms of wins, but allowed the C's to acquire assets that were ultimately cashed in for Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett.

The end result -- Boston's 17th NBA title in 2008 -- certainly took away some of the pain that the Celtics endured during the 2006 and 2007 seasons when the team won a combined 59 games.

But Rivers went through that process because, frankly, he didn't have much of a choice. After things went south in a hurry in Orlando and the C's struggled in his early years, there were legitimate concerns about whether Rivers was a good coach.

The championship season, and the deep playoff runs that followed, changed both the outlook in Boston and the way Rivers was perceived as a coach.

A number of teams have expressed interest in him recently, among them the Brooklyn Nets who were denied permission to speak with him about their coaching vacancy.

Rebuilding is tough on everyone, but especially coaches, who have a front-row seat to the drama and problems that unfold almost daily. The last thing Rivers wants to do at this point in his coaching career is go back to the days when the competition in practice was better than it was in games because players were willing to fight for minutes more than they were willing to fight for each other.

Sure those early teams weren't very good, but they had a lot of young talent that interested other teams. That's not the case with this current crop of Celtics. The roster is full of players who are in odd places in their careers.

Many are experienced enough to where they aren't necessarily considered youthful, but still young enough to where they aren't on the verge of retirement soon.

In other words, they are a microcosm of the Celtics franchise right now, which is also caught at a crossroads -- too good to become a lottery team, but not quite good enough to join the NBA's elite unless they can pull of a major blockbuster-type deal.

So where does that leave Rivers?

He understands that at the end of the day this is a business and whatever decisions he makes with his career have to be made in that context. He knows he can walk away from the game now and have his pick of TV jobs nationally, and if he does decide to return to coaching, he'll have plenty of opportunities.

But Rivers has indicated time and time again that he wants to stay in Boston, and that he wants to remain the head coach of the Celtics.

When all the dust finally settles, chances are very good that's exactly what he will be doing this season. But in the meantime, the waiting game continues.



bob


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As of 6/11:


Though Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers still hasn't given word on whether he'll return for another season, the team is hesitant about asking him for a final decision, according to the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett.

Speaking Monday night on CSNNE, Bulpett said: "The fact that I don’t know what’s going on with Doc’s situation – not a big deal, we’re used to that. The fact is the Celtic organization doesn’t know what’s going on with Doc right now, and that’s kind of alarming at this stage, more than a month after the season ended. They're grasping for answers, because he's either there (at the Celtics facility) every day or on the phone working with (president of basketball operations Danny Ainge), trying to set up the roster for next year and all that. But he hasn't given them the word yet, and by now they know that they need to hear that word."

If too much more time goes by and Rivers does choose to leave despite the three years and $21 million remaining on his contract, the Celtics could be hard-pressed to find a qualified replacement. Several top assistant coaches have already been hired elsewhere, including Mike Malone in Sacramento, Mike Budenholzer in Atlanta and Steve Clifford in Charlotte.

Stressing that he's spoken to Rivers on several occasions, Bulpett said the coach hasn't wanted to speak on the record about his future.

"It's not done yet," Bulpett said. "It's one of two things: It's either a personal situation, in which case you back off. If it's a family thing going on, or whatever it is, if it's personal that's his business, it's beyond basketball. We can live with that, accept that. If it's a basketball situation, that maybe he doesn't want to deal with a rebuilding or something like that, that's not going to look good."

"The impression I've gotten is that (Rivers) has been working with (Ainge and owner Wyc Grousbeck), getting ready for the year, and they don't want to bring it up," added Bulpett. "They don't want to, for whatever reason -- those relationships are what they are."


bob
MY NOTE: This says he's either at the facility or working on the phone with Danny setting up the roster for next year every day. He showed up for some pre-draft workouts. That doesn't sound like someone who is leaving.

I agree to a point Bob, but, there is something really strange about all of this. So, we should be prepared for the unexpected, I believe. Why is he waiting so long?
Who knows, but I have a real uneasy feeling about all of this. If he goes, so doesn't Garnett, and it goes without saying, Pierce too,

Or, is this much ado about nothing?

Rosalie

Actually Doc is coming back so he can be with his sadistic friend Danny. They both have such a good time reading all about the gnashing of teeth of Celtics fans who will jump on a rumor faster than Darrell Issa

Time for a new coach.

Although Doc has won a title, I still feel he is a bit overrated. His coaching this year resembled a boxer taking blind swings in the dark as opposed to a rational, calculated approach.

While a change of coaches from time to time can revitalize things, Doc is one of the finest coaches in the league, and as long as he's willing, I think they should keep him.

The Celtics' issues since their championship season have not been coaching related. They won one title and came down to game 7 in another season. They suffered debilitating injuries to key players in other seasons, yet still performed very well in the playoffs. They darn near beat Miami last year, which was serious overachieving.

Very few can do what Gregg Popovich is doing in San Antonio -- sustaining that level of coaching excellence over such a long period of time. Most guys burn out or need a change of scenery. With Doc, I think it will be burnout or just losing the mental/emotional spark needed to keep up the grind, not wearing out his welcome.

The only thing I have to say about Pop is that he has done one terrific job of surrounding his superstars with good, quality players. They won the game for the Spurs last night. Danny has tried, God, he has tried. Everyone was applauding him in the preseason, who would have thought that Terry would not have played even up to three quarters of his ability. Age seems to be setting in fast for him. Lee just didn't live up to what everyone thought he might be, and too much emphasis was placed on the value of Bradley to repllace the injured Rondo.  It was one thing after another.  Sully and Green turned out to be the bright spots here, the only thing was that by the time Green finally came around, Sully was gone.  

Doc Rivers is a great coach, and I for one, do not want to see him gone. Look at the coaching ranks, guys that won got fired! Who would you put in the position of head coach of the Boston Celtics if he left?  

Let's not go nuts here,  let's just hope this all comes to an end soon so that Danny can spend the majority of his time fixing what ails us!


Rosalie

I believe I can safely say that, never in their history, have the Celtics experienced such a sustained skein of repeated games lost to injury as since the championship year.  And, for the most part, the injuries have been to key personnel.

When a group of players tries to play a team game like the Celtics do, one of the very important ingredients is a collection of interchangeable players.  Sometimes, during the past few seasons, they've had more interchangeable parts than at other times.  This year, this wasn't the case—at least not enough to contend.  That wasn't Doc's fault; and—with the exception of the lack of a backup PG, it wasn't Danny's fault either. (considering the magic many people felt he worked in dealing with the salary cap.).

I've gone on record as disliking the Celtics offense for some time now.  But I realize that—in virtually every season—Doc has been forced to simplify the offense in order to refurbish whatever chemistry he would sustain among the players he had at his disposal.  Discontinuity, thine name was Doc.  Defense was their calling card most of the time because he smartly realized that, if the team was going to have to confront complexity at one end of the floor or the other, the defensive end would pay off more.

I really get a kick out of all the analyses of Doc because, for several years now, we haven't seen the real Doc able to work with a full quiiver of arrows.  And, unfortunately, each year that happened was another season lost to age.

As for whether Doc will return, I have no idea why it's such a major source of conjecture.  He doesn't owe the fans or even the team an expedited decision, although I do believe that he, Danny and Wyc already know the result of his decision and are already making plans to act accordingly.

Sam

Greg Popovich doesn't try to win games with 6-man rotations when 3 of the players are over 30. Just saying.

It may be a moot point. There's a report on ESPN that Doc thinks "it may be time for a change."

http://espn.go.com/boston/nba/story/_/id/9375491/doc-rivers-feels-for-change-boston-celtics-source-says

They say Lionel Hollins might be leaving the Grizzlies.

Good pick up Outside..................WELL LET THE INTERVIEWING BEGIN!

I think 2 things are happening and why Doc is looking to leave:

1) Danny wants to rebuild and Doc wants no part of rebuilding....he wants instant gratification NOW....meaning a winning record and a potential title. Rebuilding the Celtics will not get Doc A title now.

The next logical path for Doc if he were to remain with the Celtics would have had him assume GM title and power over trades and draft choices, and Danny just assuming the role of President and taking care of league affairs etc.

Well...Danny is not giving up that power of trades/free agent signings and draft picks..............so there is no where Doc can go UNLESS DANNY IS FIRED.

SOOOOOOO.....................................................................

2) Doc will want to leave to coach a near title contender...needing that little extra push to win a championship.........this serves Doc in 2 ways.First, he gets a chance to win NOW, second....he keeps his coaching record respectable with a winning team....and improves his HOF credentials down the road as a coach. He may also assume more power in another organization regarding trades, free agent signings and drafting.

So why did he sign for 5 years and $35Million........simple....who knows what the future holds......why not lock into BIG $$$$$$ and family security....makes sense.....hey you can always leave and do other things..........like what is happening NOW!

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