The Philadelphia 76ers blew a tremendous opportunity on Thursday night. They could have already been sitting pretty right now, waiting for either the Miami Heat or the New York Knicks as their opponents in the Eastern Conference Finals. Instead, they allowed Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics to steal away a 95-86 victory in Philly, thereby forcing a Game 7 in Boston on Sunday.
Sixers fans clearly aren't happy about this brutal loss. At this point, the fear-mongering has begun, and it's now being pointed in the direction of head coach Doc Rivers:
Doc Rivers is now 17-32 all-time with an opportunity to close out a playoff series (min. 15 games).
The 32 losses are the most by any coach in NBA history 😬 pic.twitter.com/oiROlQzOUu
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 12, 2023
Doc Rivers has lost nine times in a Game 7, four more than any other head coach. pic.twitter.com/zBKjn39nRg
— ESPN (@espn) May 12, 2023
Doc Rivers last 9 games to make it to the Conference Finals:
2015 Game 5 — Loss
2015 Game 6 — Loss
2015 Game 7 — Loss
2017 Game 7 — Loss
2020 Game 5 — Loss
2020 Game 6 — Loss
2020 Game 7 — Loss
2021 Game 7 — Loss
2023 Game 6 — Loss pic.twitter.com/rD6VT9XHnk— َ (@FeelLikeDrew) May 12, 2023
Doc Rivers teams after going up 3-2
In a series pic.twitter.com/pJzvr0DZWP https://t.co/nf1GZqQ5wf— 𝐃𝐓 (@GianniGoat) May 12, 2023
Doc Rivers when he’s one win away from the conference finals pic.twitter.com/2zCxHQCFAU
— Jake (@SuperiorNBA) May 12, 2023
A Doc Rivers offense crumbling down the stretch of a close out game tell me if youve heard this before
— Hoops Reference (@HoopsReference) May 12, 2023
History clearly isn't on Philly's side for Game 7, and it has a lot to do with Doc Rivers. The veteran coach has been through his fair share of closeout games in the past, and unfortunately for Sixers fans, Rivers does not exactly have a stellar record — as pointed out by the folks on Twitter.
The good news for Coach Doc is that he still has an opportunity to redeem himself. If he's able to coach the Sixers to victory in Game 7 on Sunday then surely, Philly fans are going to get behind him again. It's a huge ask for Rivers and his quad, though, with Tatum and Co. playing on their own home turf come Sunday.
If the Sixers end up losing Game 7 then it would obviously spell the end of the season for them. At that point, it wouldn't be unfathomable to imagine that Doc Rivers' tenure as head coach could potentially be put into question.
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