BOSTON — The Philadelphia 76ers' Game 7 implosion against the Boston Celtics is another notch in the belt of Doc Rivers' playoff failures. He now falls to 6-10 all-time in Game 7s and has lost his previous five. After another blown 3-2 lead and premature exit for his Sixers, questions about his job security are popping up left and right.
When asked if he intends to coach the Sixers next year, Rivers said that he does. “I think I got two years left, so,” he said regarding his contract with the team. But with his seat likely heating up, the veteran coach knows the reality of the situation.
“No one's safe in our business,” Rivers said. “And I get that.”
The day before the Sixers' game, the Phoenix Suns parted ways with head coach Monty Williams, the winningest coach in the league during his three seasons there. Rivers said that he talked with his close friend following his dismissal. Williams' firing came after that of Nick Nurse and Mike Budenholzer, who each led their teams to championships.
Joel Embiid was very complimentary to Rivers after the game, saying that he has “done a fantastic job. He came in and I think we've gotten better over the years. I thought he's done a great job. I don't make the decisions. I think you should be fine. We've got a great relationship. You look at the way he handled the whole situation that we had a year or two ago. [I] thought he kept the team afloat. He's been a great leader, for all of us. A great motivator.”
Meanwhile, Harden said his relationship with Doc is just “okay” after the game. While the Sixers' downfall in Game 7 is much, much more the fault of Embiid and Harden than it is Rivers, the long history of playoff collapses from the coach can not get overlooked. Despite the failure of this year's squad, Rivers is ready to run it back.
“Yeah. I believe that wholeheartedly,” Doc Rivers said when asked if this Sixers team should be given another shot. “But that's not up to me. It really is not up to me. That's up to our owners and [president of basketball operations Daryl Morey]. I think they liked what they saw overall.”
There will be plenty of options for the Sixers if they choose to fire Rivers. Given Embiid's admiration for him, his job seems mostly secure. But Philly will have a lot of questions to ask itself in the offseason. One of them will be about Rivers and his ability to get the most out of this group.
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