Hall of Fame coach Doc Rivers’s career includes a Celtics title, what-ifs, and few regrets
And lastly in Milwaukee, Rivers tried pushing an outdated Bucks crew into rivalry with a banged-up Giannis Antetokounmpo, however that appeared doomed from the beginning. Rivers’s resume could be elite with one other championship or two, and he’s resigned to the actual fact some of these playoff shortcomings in Los Angeles are partially to be blamed on him.
But Rivers is proud of his accomplishments, together with simply 4 dropping seasons and 21 playoff appearances in 27 years.
“You go through a lot of crap. Like that’s part of your life,” Rivers informed the Globe of resurrecting franchises. “When I left Boston and I went to the Clippers, my goal was I had two goals. One was to turn that franchise into a real freaking franchise. I mean you can make a case I went from the best franchise in basketball to the worst. By the time I left, the Clippers were a destination that players wanted to go to.”
The Clippers misplaced 3-1 playoff sequence results in the Rockets in 2015 and the Nuggets in the 2020 NBA Bubble. The Bubble loss was probably the most devastating as a result of it was the primary yr of the Kawhi Leonard–Paul George pairing, and a sequence win would have meant a fascinating conflict with the rival Lakers within the Western Conference finals. It by no means occurred.
But he has few regrets.
“Winning a title, I didn’t accomplish that and we had some just brutal games where we almost got over the hump and didn’t get over the hump,” he stated. “That’s just part of your legacy that you live with, but damn, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Like I would go through that all again to have the chance to do it. Like only one team wins, and like Bill Belichick [told] me, either you land the plane or it’s a crash landing.
“I mean that’s dramatic, but that’s how I try to operate. I’ve never handled [losing] well. I wish I could have done that better. Like if I have one regret, you know. I don’t have a lot of regrets because my dad was the no victim thing.”
Winning just one championship sticks with Rivers as a result of he had a bunch of proficient groups and alternatives to get again to the highest. The greatest was with the Celtics, who lost the Finals in seven games to the Lakers in 2010.
“I think there’s one you can do a lot of winning, but the only thing I was in this for was to be the winner, and I was only that once,” he stated. “That’s a harsh [expletive] way of looking at, it is. But that’s part of why you coach, and that’s part of why I was successful, is because of that drive. I wanted to beat people. Yeah, that was it. Why did you do it? Because I’m still loving it, and I love the chase of trying to be the winner.”
Rivers stated he had a dialog with a participant after an excruciating playoff loss and the participant informed him, “I don’t know how you can take this pain. This is the closest I’ve ever been, and I’m crushed. I don’t know how you do this. Rivers responded: “Well, it’s the same thing. If you look at this [like] falling in love with the most beautiful person in the world 100 times, and 99 times asking them to marry you, and they say no. But the one time they say yes is worth it. Yeah, it’s worth the 99.”
When Rivers agreed to half methods with the Bucks after a 32-50 end to final season, he knew the run was over. He’s 64 with seven grandkids. They simply loved a whole household celebration in Martha’s Vineyard, and he’s at peace together with his accomplishments and affect on the sport.
“I can tell you late in the year, I knew that. I think I’ve had my run, I still love coaching, and I still love the game, but I just think it’s time for me,” he stated. “And part of that, a lot of that, was family stuff. That’s the only toll. Like a family, if you’re going to coach a long time … your family’s going to take the hit. My seven grandkids, honestly, I just feel like I’m the only absentee person. Everybody else is always there, and when my daughter calls or Austin [Rivers’s son, the former NBA player] calls, you’re talking about the grandkids. Oh man, you should have seen Kayden at school today. Or man, Carter wants you to come visit. Like I want to be able to say I’ll be there tomorrow, or I want to have been there, and I want to be able to say yes.
“And the [last] 40 years I’ve not been able to do that, and definitely as a coach, I’ve never been able to do that. And I want to do that. So I want to work, but not as a coach. And I’ll figure that out. I’m going to take my time and see where that goes.”
What the Hall of Fame induction has allowed him to do is have a good time the nice occasions, the relationships, the victories, the franchise turnarounds, the championship.
“I’ve just never been able to do that before,” he stated. “I remember Coach [Pat] Riley saying, ‘Man, you need to celebrate the good days better. You need to understand that.’ Yeah, he was right again, and I probably did not do that very well. But I’m trying to celebrate this one. I mean, I have all my coaches. I’ve had all of them, we’ve had conversations, or we’ve had dinners for this last two months. It’s been awesome reminiscing and talking to all of them.
“It’s been really fun, and the players, too. I’ve heard more stories of things that I said, that ‘I’m like I said that?, or I did that?’ And everybody’s dying laughing. I mean, I’m not going to share any of that, but I did some funny stuff over the years.”
TOP FIVE
Brown’s 76ers debut a must-watch
The NBA schedule has been formally launched and there are a bunch of intriguing video games, participant returns resembling Jaylen Brown’s to Boston on Jan. 21, and scintillating matchups between title-contending groups.
Here is a take a look at probably the most intriguing 5 video games of what ought to be a fascinating season.
76ers at Knicks, Oct. 20: It’s an opening night matchup between the 2 greatest groups within the Eastern Conference on paper.
Some questions can be answered on this sport, resembling how will Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse handle the lineups and the minutes for the likes of LeBron James and Embiid. It can even be Brown’s debut together with his new crew. In New York, the Knicks did little to their championship roster in addition to changing Mitchell Robinson (Celtics) with Andre Drummond as a result of they didn’t wish to be a second apron crew.
The Knicks would be the targets each night time as a result of they’re the defending champs, and it is going to be fascinating to see how they cope with such challenges. No NBA crew has repeated because the 2017-18 Warriors.
Thunder at Spurs, Oct. 20: The NBA isn’t messing round with the opening night time lineup, with the Western Conference rivals assembly after each groups went by offseason modifications.
The Thunder didn’t make as many drastic modifications because the Celtics to keep away from the second apron, however they did commerce Aaron Wiggins, Isaiah Joe, and Luguentz Dort to clear cap area, that means Jared McCain and rookie Aday Mara can be within the combine. Oklahoma City will depend on youthful gamers and a wholesome Jalen Williams to vary its destiny from final season.
San Antonio hopes De’Aaron Fox can get fully wholesome and return to kind after a tough NBA Finals. The Spurs additionally added depth in Tobias Harris, however their hope is that Finals expertise helps them take the subsequent step.
Heat at Bucks, Jan. 28: By this time, the Heat ought to be extra of a identified amount with Antetokounmpo becoming a member of Bam Adebayo after 13 years in Milwaukee.
This sport can be his first time again and it’s going to actually be emotional, nevertheless it was a relationship that was destined to finish as a result of the Bucks wanted to rebuild. Milwaukee was in a position to get a haul from Miami in gamers and draft picks, and ought to be an rising crew in coming years. But for now, the Bucks can be picked to complete close to the underside of the Eastern Conference.
As for the Heat, they could possibly be a top-six seed or a play-in crew, just about just like the previous a number of years.
Wizards at Hawks, Nov. 6: Not solely is that this Trae Young’s return sport to Atlanta after seven-plus years as its cornerstone, however it is going to be a likelihood to take a lengthy take a look at the new-look Wizards.
Young is joined by Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr, and Brockton native AJ Dybantsa, who ought to enter the season as a Rookie of the Year favourite. Washington seems able to take basketball significantly after years of rebuilding.
The Hawks could possibly be the third-best crew within the East with their acquisitions of Dort and Wiggins together with a re-signed CJ McCollum. If there’s a yr for Atlanta to take a step ahead, it’s this one. The East, past the Knicks and 76ers, is huge open, and the Hawks have made the mandatory strikes to be a critical contender.
Celtics at Lakers, Jan. 7: Two franchises that made important offseason modifications, and each predicted to take steps again of their respective conferences.
Boston can be led by Jayson Tatum, fully wholesome after a outstanding early comeback from the ruptured Achilles, with the likes of Paul George, Derrick White, and Robinson as his supporting solid. The Lakers reshaped their roster by permitting James, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, and Luke Kennard to signal elsewhere, and by shifting Deandre Ayton. The new additions are Walker Kessler, Collin Sexton, Quentin Grimes, and Sandro Mamukelashvili for what ought to be an attention-grabbing crew however not one more likely to compete for the primary division of the West.
The Lakers-Celtics rivalry is the league’s greatest, and this sport can have a number of new characters as each groups attempt to reload to get again to elite standing.
ETC.
Westbrook deserving of accolades
Russell Westbrook’s sudden retirement got here as a shock. It was apparent even on the superior age of 37 that he had a lot left within the tank. Unfortunately for Westbrook, he put himself in a tough place as a result of of that manufacturing.
Would a crew in want of a backup level guard take a flyer on Westbrook, figuring out he’s more likely to demand minutes and touches? It appeared the reply was no. And what could be the use for Westbrook to play for a rebuilding crew — like final season with the Kings — simply to pile up numbers however with no likelihood of profitable an elusive championship.
Westbrook could have been one of the extra maligned first-ballot Hall of Famers in NBA historical past. While he stuffed up stat sheets, particularly with triple-doubles, ultimately these numbers have been maligned as a result of they didn’t end in crew success. He was accused of stat chasing, which might happen when these numbers don’t equate to deep playoff runs. His greatest likelihood to win a title was in 2011-12 when the Thunder ran the Heat off the ground in Game 1 in Oklahoma City, however they didn’t win one other sport within the sequence.
Westbrook will all the time be related to Kevin Durant as a result of of their rise to success in OKC, the place every received an MVP. But their breakup was additionally notorious and was a rivalry whereas enjoying with competing groups. Durant posted a touching tribute to Westbrook on social media, and Westbrook is receiving the appreciation he really deserves for being one of the sport’s nice opponents.
But he averaged 15.2 factors, 5.4 rebounds, and 6.7 assists in 64 video games final yr for the Kings, so don’t be shocked if he ultimately will get a name from a competing crew searching for a high quality level guard.
Celtics devoted, in addition to those that comply with the Pistons in Detroit, are questioning concerning the wacky 3 p.m. begin for his or her season opener on Oct. 20, which would be the league’s first sport of the 2026-27 season. It seems the NBA needs to make use of Boston-Detroit to attract in a global viewers, giving followers in Europe a primetime sport, which can kickoff a tripleheader that continues with 76ers-Knicks and concludes with Thunder-Spurs. The Celtics additionally return to the Christmas Day slate with a matchup with Antetokounmpo and the Heat. The league can be monitoring the rankings for that Tuesday afternoon sport, hoping it could possibly be the start of a custom to start the season … Blessings and farewell to the good Don Nelson, who is understood round most NBA circles for his teaching prowess and Nellie Ball, main groups such because the Bucks, Warriors, and Mavericks to success. But in Boston, Nelson was a nice Celtics participant, notching 11 seasons right here and profitable 5 championships. He was one of the few gamers to bridge the Russell-Jones Boys period with the Cowens-White-Havlicek period, retiring after the 1976 championship season. Of course, his most well-known play was in Game 7 of the 1969 NBA Finals when his jumper with 1:33 left clanged excessive off the again of the rim and tricked into the basket for a 105-102 lead. The Celtics would ultimately win, 108-106, in a single of probably the most impactful video games in NBA historical past. It could be the ultimate NBA video games for Bill Russell and Sam Jones … One attention-grabbing restricted free agent who stays unsigned is Peyton Watson, who reportedly seeks a contract north of what the Nuggets paid teammate Christian Braun, who signed a five-year, $125 million extension final October. Watson is brimming with potential and excelled final season when celebrity Nikola Jokic was out with a knee harm. But Watson was restricted to 54 video games as a result of of harm, and Denver is within the second wage cap apron after signing Spencer Jones. There have an interest suitors in Watson, who averaged 14.6 factors in 2025-26 and has elevated his scoring in every of his first 4 seasons. The Clippers and Cavaliers try to rearrange their books and create cap area for a reputable provide.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He may be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.