DOC RIVERS: WINNING TITLES IS ‘ONLY REASON I’M COACHING’

WEEI

06.26.13 at 3:39 pm ET
By Ben Rohrbach



Doc Rivers has Clippers fever!

As the Clippers introduced new vice president of basketball operations and coach Doc Rivers, he sat stone-faced for most of the press conference, offering no objection to former Celtics colleague Danny Ainge‘s version of events the past two weeks.

“Quite honestly,” said Rivers from L.A., “at this point in my life, that’s the only reason I’m coaching — is to try and win titles.”

After watching him coach in Boston for nine seasons, it was strange hearing Rivers using “we” and “us” when referencing the Clippers, but clearly he’s moved on from a team he no longer believed to be a contender. As C’s owner Wyc Grousbeck said Wednesday morning, “I don’t think he wanted to rebuild with us; I think he wanted to make his win-loss record better.”

Over the past 24 hours, Ainge and Grousbeck both stated their desire for Rivers to fulfill the three years remaining on his coaching contract in Boston, and Rivers never actually disputed their claims, although he deflected a bit.

“After the year, I had no plans of leaving and didn’t give it a lot of thought, honestly,” said Rivers. “After every year — and Danny knows me as well as anyone — I put everything I can into a season, and then, if you ask me immediately after the season, I’m not coming back. I’m going home. I’m just burnt out. I’m tired.

“This lasted a little longer, and so when Danny and I talked, I told him I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, and we just basically sat around as a team and talked about what’s the best way at that time to improve the Celtics, and we went into talking about different scenarios. A couple other teams came up, and Danny talked about assets — me and Kevin Garnett at the time — and then the name Clippers came up, and I thought, ‘Well, that’s interesting,’ and you’d be amazed how — from that point on — I really kind of stepped back. Danny kind of did the talking and would report back to me. I didn’t talk to you or anybody, so I was kind of left out. It was really interesting.

“One thing I would like to make clear: There were never any threats. ‘If you don’t get me here, I’m not doing this.’ ‘I’m not coming back.’ There was never any of that. It was just kind of a negotiation with Danny and [Clippers president] Andy Roeser, and if it all worked out, then I would consider it. That’s basically where it went to, and the closer we got to this thing actually happening is the more I got interested in it.”

Still, both Rivers and Ainge believed they would continue working together until early this week.


“On Sunday, Danny and I were talking about our roster, and then on Sunday night this deal was agreed upon, so that’s how volatile this whole thing was and has been,” said Rivers. “I always think teams find their path, and I think this just took a long, winding path, but it found its way, and so I’m happy about that.

“I thought it was over, so it was easy for me to just tell Danny, ‘Let’s just start with the rebuild.’”

Instead, Rivers found himself in Los Angeles sans jacket and tie — but with a Clippers jersey.

“This was a strange ordeal over the last couple weeks,” added Rivers. “As you can see by my attire, I don’t have any suits, because they’re all in Boston right now. I flew in from Orlando. That’s where I stay in the offseason, and I basically wear shorts and T-shirts all summer. This is a new challenge for me.”

That challenge includes a fancy new title that gives him (some) control over personnel decisions.

“It is nice having more input, and that’s something every coach wants, obviously,” said Rivers, who Ainge affirmed never asked for a title change in Boston, “and I’ve been afforded the trust and the opportunity to do that.”

In classic Clippers fashion, Roeser didn’t exactly relinquish much of his power in front of the cameras.

“I think titles don’t mean that much,” said the Clippers president. “I think what matters is we are all going to sit down together and work on this, and we’re going to be making this team better. We have a lot of work to do, but Doc has a lot of experience as a player, as a coach. He’s been to the Finals, he’s won championships, and he’s going to have input to our roster and how we go about it. Quite frankly, I don’t think he wants to be bothered or should be bothered with a lot of detail work and scouting, so I think his focus should be on coaching.”

Regardless, the Clippers got their man, giving up an unprotected 2015 first-round pick to get him.

“This is truly one of the biggest moments in Clipper history,” added VP Gary Sacks. “I’m definitely excited to be here to introduce Doc Rivers. We feel he’s the best coach in the NBA and a perfect fit for this organization. Doc is a championship coach who brings a unique basketball mind to our team and to our organization, and I think that he has not only the respect of everyone in our organization but all of our players and staff.”

Well, until the Clippers are no longer a contender, at least.

112288

I think my post comment about Doc was spot on..............just another empty suit on the bench a la Phil Jackson.

I'll add just one other thing...........Doc you may have worked for the Celtics................BUT YOU WERE NEVER A CELTIC!

112288

From the time of the trip to Rome, Doc constantly preached, practiced, and nurtured Ubunto, which was just another name for the Celtics' signature ethic virtually throughout their entire history.  He held the team together and produced surprisingly positive results during several seasons when injuries created some of the most pronounced discontinuity the Celtics have suffered in their history.  Doc didn't trade away Perk.  He just shut up and did his best as he always did.

So he lives for titles.  So did Red Auerbach.  So do I.  So do Celtics teams.  So do most real Celtics fans.  It's really just another way to say, "I won't be satisfied until we achieve our objective." It's a veritable blueprint for supreme effort, whether it's applied to basketball or World War II. I frankly thought it was disingenuous of Wyc to try to put a negative spin on it when he said he thought Doc just wanted to fatten his won-lost percentage.

Doc has been almost the exact opposite of Phil Jackson.  Doc's coaching history has been one of taking teams on the downside and turning them around, from back in his Orlando days when he was Coach of the Year.  Phil's a front-runner and always will be.

Doc wasn't perfect.  I certainly wasn't wild about his offense.  But to imply that Doc did not fit the Celtics coaching mold by leaving it all on the court is absolutely inaccurate.  His energy was sapped, and he was facing yet another rebuilding effort.  He was obviously burned out in Boston.  He didn't owe the team or fans or anyone anything except to make a decision that would reenergize him to keep doing his level best despite the stress of being an NBA coach.

I wish him luck with the Clippers.

Sam

112288, Sam

Is it possible for me to agree with both of you?

Doc is no Phil jackson but his reason for leaving is Phil jakson like.

dboss

Dboss,

Yes, but it's not a pattern with Doc. It could be argued that he has paid his dues in the coal mines and has labored long and hard for this reward. Phil Jackson, not so much. Coaching-wise, he has been nourished by having a silver spoon in his mouth.

Now, please don't think I have anything against Phil Jackson. It's just that I can't stand him.

Sam

ha

Doc gave us his best for nine long years. He did wonders, and he deserves our gratitude and respect. I wish him well wherever he goes. Thank God it wasn't to the Lakers!

Quite the interesting precedence being set here.

"I'm tired of having tough or losing seasons and I only want to win championships."

Are coaches no longer obligated to build and mold teams? Instant gratification is infectious it would seem.

Well, naturally, it is every coach's desire to win the title. That's why they play the game. But any person with aspirations of being a coach should realize that there are difficulties and that no one is "entitled" to winning. Winning is a product of hard work, perseverance, and a good bit of luck.

As for Doc, I guess he went where he felt he had a better shot at a title, which is fine. But is the Clippers roster really that much better than a healthy Boston roster? I wouldn't say so. Chris Paul is really the only incredible player on that team.

KJ

In regards to Phil Jackson's "coaching ability," look at most modern-era championship teams. They are star-laden teams with deep benches. Doc didn't win anything relevant until he had three future HOF players and a deep bench.

Also, Sam, I wouldn't necessarily say he turned ORL around, per se. He more or less kept things around where they were. At the end of the Hardaway era, Orlando was a team with roughly 40+ wins before Doc and stayed around the same after he was hired, but eventually he was fired from that job.. Doc didn't do exceedingly well in Boston until the championship team was brought together. Boston traded a bulk of their young players away for higher profile talent.

This goes to show that presently, the only teams that really win, with the exception of the Spurs, are the ones loaded with traded/free agency talent instead of players drafted and groomed by the coach.

KJ

I'm good with that statement.

I wouldn't want any coach at the highest level of his sport that didn't say that.

NYCelt,

My question is... should every coach that thinks they are "worth" a championship do the same as Doc? There are only so many championship caliber teams in this league. Not enough to go around for all the egos to find a viable place to satiate their palates.

KJ

K_J,

One could debate whether taking a team that was picked to finish last and guiding them to a .500 finish that was good enough to net Doc Coach of the Year honors represented a "turnaround" of sorts versus expectations—and in the first year of his first coaching job.  However, that's really incidental to my main point of my post, which was not intended to be an appraisal of Doc's competence. I was suggesting that, unlike Phil Jackson, Doc paid the dues of mediocrity with so-so personnel and/or decimating injury setbacks long enough to deserve the opportunity to escape the prospect of more of the same in favor of moving to a team where he felt there would be better material with which to work.

I don't believe that, just because only one coach per year can win championship, coaches should be discouraged from aspiring to greatness.  It seems to me that Doc was in no way expressing a sense of entitlement but was simply reflecting on his motivation— for which I commend him.

Sam