It seems like it was years, not weeks ago that Doc Rivers forced Boston’s hand and was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.
While many believe it was a poorly handled situation by Rivers — and it was — that does not mean he left with hard feelings toward Boston.
After all, everyone follows the track, some are just better at hiding the trail.
Despite the mess Rivers left behind, which has now, ironically, sorted itself out into a roster depleted of veteran talent, he traveled back to the East coast this week for a charity basketball event at TD Garden. Justin Barrasso of WEEI.com has the scoop, as well as several tidbits from Rivers on his time with the Celtics: “Doc Rivers returned to TD Garden on Wednesday night. The former coach of the Celtics served as a co-chair of the Action for Boston Community Development’s Hoop Dreams charity event and spent the evening shaking hands, signing autographs and sharing stories about his time in Boston.”
“It’s tough to leave the Celtics because it’s the Celtics,” Rivers said. “It was the best nine years of basketball that I’ve ever been a part of, but I also fell in love with the city. And, for me, the hardest part is leaving the city. I’ve met friends that have changed my life here, and they’ll always be my friends.”
“Fans never got to see Kevin’s personality,” Rivers said. “I wish the city got to know Kevin more. He’s the single best athlete that I’ve ever been around as far as being a team guy. He’s as ‘team’ of a star as I’ve ever seen …
“He did a lot of good things that people don’t know,” Rivers said. “When rookies came in, he would bring them up to my office. He’d sit them down, and then he would bring his tailor in and say, ‘If you want to be a pro, you’ve got to dress like a pro.’ And he would buy each rookie two suits, and he did it every year. To me, that says a lot about Kevin Garnett as a teammate.”
It’s nice to hear some candor and disclosure from Rivers on his time and departure with the Celtics. But as we come up on the halfway point of September, the upcoming NBA season is right around the corner. While Rivers may approach this season with the same goal as he has in the past, he will approach it with a new team.
“Chris Paul andBlake Griffin, the first thing I asked them, I said, you know what bugged me? I watched the Finals, and you guys were on more than the game. You’re on every commercial. We need to get off the commercials and onto the floor.”
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