Doc Rivers should be the next Philadelphia 76ers head coach
Doc is still one of the best coaches in the league and even though the best thing for him might be taking a break from coaching, he’s the best candidate of these two coaches for the Sixers job. Like D’Antoni, I think Rivers will need some personnel changes within the Sixers roster to make his offense have the best chance of working, but not as drastic of changes as there would be with the former Rockets lead man.
Doc could want another playmaker outside of Simmons at the point guard position (Chris Paul reunion anyone?) but outside of that, I think he would be fine engraining most of the current roster in Philadelphia into his offensive schemes.
Instead of seeing endless Embiid post-ups or Simmons drives off a high screen, Rivers’ offense would add some much-needed spacing and motion to the Sixers. As simple as it may sound, Doc would add a lot more screening and off-ball actions to their offense, which could help them immensely.
Philadelphia ranked 22nd in screen assists (595) and 23rd in screen assist points (1,341) last season, whereas the Clippers under Rivers ranked fifth in screen assists (806) and screen assist points (1,888). This could be a much-needed change for the Sixers and open up easier shots for Embiid, Simmons, and Harris. If you look at some of the old sets Rivers ran with the Clippers below, you can see the number of things that could be added to the Philadelphia offensive playbook.
Embiid getting easier buckets on rolls to the rim and passing out of the high post more, Simmons getting more open driving lanes, and Harris having a ton of open looks off-ball.
The biggest thing I believe Rivers could bring to the Sixers though is his ability to potentially repair what looks to be a somewhat fractured locker room. Doc has the ability to bring his teams together and manage big personalities, something I think he can do in bridging the apparent gap between Embiid and Simmons, to get them on the same page finally.
Whether it’s Mike D’Antoni or Doc Rivers, both will be met with enormous expectations arriving in the city of brotherly love. But for my money, Doc is the easy and better hire if the Sixers wants to meet their championship aspirations.