Does Doc Rivers deserve all the blame for the LA Clippers’ collapse
After seven seasons as the head coach of the LA Clippers, Doc Rivers and the organization agreed to mutually part ways after many rumors and much speculation about who was ultimately responsible for the team’s monumental collapse in their Western Conference Semifinals loss to the Denver Nuggets after taking a 3-1 lead in the series.
Did Rivers deserve to be the fall guy for the Clippers disappointing performance?
Normally during these situations, the head coaches are usually the ones to receive the blame with everyone pointing the finger directly at them like they were the ones who actually got on the court and lost, but I must make a case for Rivers.
In all fairness, Rivers has had to deal with multiple players being injured during the course of the season and had to adjust his lineups on numerous occasions on the fly to try and figure out the right fit as his team also had issues developing chemistry.
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It also has to be taken into account that the season was unexpectedly interrupted by a globlal pandemic. Even though all the teams in the league had to adapt to playing in the bubble and had to go through the necessary changes in order to continue playing, that period of time really took a toll on the Clippers. When the season did finally resume, Rivers had to deal with situations in the bubble.
For example, when Lou Williams was ordered to be placed in quarantine due to the “Lemon Pepper Lou” fiasco after Williams exited the bubble and was spotted at a gentlemen’s’ club possibly exposing himself to the virus forcing him to miss important games in the process considering that they just had a long layoff and were trying to get back in basketball shape.
Montrezl Harrell was also absent due to the passing of his grandmother while Patrick Beverly was dealing with injuries as it was difficult for Rivers to settle on a solidified rotation before the playoffs began. It is yet to be determined whether Kawhi Leonard or Paul George had any influence on the decision to move on from Rivers and it would be surprising to find out that either one had anything to do with his departure considering that they both agreed to sign with the team knowing Rivers could be there for the foreseeable future as neither one of them ever publicly expressed any displeasure with their coach.
Maybe Clippers owner Steve Ballmer felt the need that the players needed a new voice in the locker room and that a coaching change would do the players some good. While Rivers has an excellent reputation and is already proven as a coach, he does have his fair share of disappointments.
Rivers is the only coach in NBA history to lose a 3-1 series lead in three different playoff series while compiling an overall playoff record of 27-32 as the Clippers head coach. According to ESPN, Rivers also has the worst win percentage in potential series-clinching games with the Clippers compiling a record of 3-8 in such games.
That’s the worse of Rivers’ coaching career, so now let’s examine some of his major accomplishments. He has 943 career wins which rank him 11th on the all-time list. He won the 1999-00 NBA Coach of the Year while coaching the Orlando Magic and has also finished in the top 3 of his conference in 16 of his 21 seasons coaching.
Even if the Clippers had advanced to the Western Conference Finals, there was no guarantees that they would have defeated the Lakers, especially considering the performances of LeBron James and Anthony Davis as of late. Even though the expectations of this Clippers team was nothing less of a championship, the front office should have understood that it takes teams time to build and mold a team and Rivers should have been afforded more time to get this team on the right track.
The Clippers players also displayed a lack of desire and seemed to be unengaged on the goal of winning in these playoffs. At times they seemed to lose focus, they didn’t look motivated and their body language as a whole said that they were mentally defeated.
There really was nothing Rivers or any coach could have done at that point. Rivers could have given all the speeches and tried every motivational tactic in the book, but at the end of the day, the players have to find the fire from within themselves and actually want to win. These were the NBA playoffs and many teams would have loved to be in the position to compete for a title.
That’s the ultimate team goal and what every player strives to achieve and Rivers unfairly accepted and took the blame for the Clippers playoff exit. If you look back at the 2008 Boston Celtics team that Rivers coached to an NBA title, you can ell the difference in the players he was coaching then compared to what he had with the Clippers.
I don’t believe Rivers had to do much to motivate a Kevin Garnett or had to remind Paul Pierce to stay focused or even had to question the desire or heart of a Ray Allen. At the end of the day, it wasn’t bad coaching but actually a lack of desire from the Clippers players.
The 76ers, Pacers, Pelicans, Thunder, and Rockets all have head coaching vacancies and it would be an absolute shock if Rivers isn’t offered one of these jobs. The coaching vacancy for the Clippers is a dream situation for any candidate considering the job. Their only glaring need is a starting point guard and if the new coach is capable of handling all of the egos and huge personalities along with the pressure of competing in Los Angeles, then that this would be the ideal destination for them.
The new coach will also have to make a terrific first impression as both Leonard and George have opt-out clauses in their contracts they can both exercise at the end of next season. Coaches the Clippers may consider replacing Rivers are Tyronn Lue, Sam Cassell, Nate McMillan, Mark Jackson, or possibly Jason Kidd.
I’m sure the absence of Doc Rivers will begin to take effect on the Clippers if he is hired by another team and begins to have immediate success. He is too good of a coach and is very capable of carrying a willing team to the NBA Finals. Maybe then will the Clippers organization regret parting ways with the greatest coach in Clippers’ history as they failed to allow him ample time to deliver a championship.