Immediately after nine-time All-Star Chris Paul had been traded from the L.A. Clippers to the Houston Rockets, guard Austin Rivers began taking the brunt of the blame for Paul's departure. Immediately after news broke of the trade, a report from SportsCenter anchor Michael Eaves, indicating that head coach Doc Rivers played favorites with his son Austin, spread like wildfire.
This wasn't the first time a source or outlet reported tension between the younger Rivers and players within the Clippers' locker room, but this one felt a lot more serious with Paul's departure. Immediately following the news, Austin Rivers called up Chris Paul and, as detailed by Sam Amick of USA TODAY Sports, the two discussed the report Paul called ‘bullsh*t.'
“I called Chris and was like, ‘Chris, what’s going on?'” Austin Rivers told USA TODAY Sports while in town to watch NBA summer league. “Chris is like, ‘This is the biggest bull(expletive) I've ever seen in my life.' Chris was just like, ‘This is a joke.' So I asked him, I’m like, ‘You don’t need to come out and say nothing publicly, I don’t need you to do that. It’s just going to make it even more, now they’re going to drag it out two more days. I’ll take it. I don’t care. I’ve been dealing with this (dynamic) since I was six (years old). I really don’t even care.'”
According to Amick, Paul and Rivers spoke on the phone for about 40 minutes, where Paul explained that his decision to move on from Los Angeles was more because of the opportunity to play with Rockets' star James Harden than anything else.
“For me, first of all, I love the Clippers and the organization,” said Paul. “[Owner] Steve Ballmer has been unbelievable. The relationship I made with him over the last few years is something that won’t go anywhere. I’m grateful, thankful and so blessed. I feel like I’m leaving Los Angeles with nothing but love.”
“I feel like the last six years we’ve had a great run. I felt like it was not only a good time for change for me, but for the team, too. Everyone says, ‘We get killed. We can’t get there. We just can’t get over the hurdle.' I felt like it was time for change.”
Clearly, Paul's decision had nothing to do with either of the Rivers, and the relationship between the two seems fine despite the rumors of dysfunction.
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