The Clippers and Doc Rivers have reached an agreement on a deal that will extend the head coach’s contract, the team announced today in a press release. Terms of the agreement aren’t yet known, but Rivers’ contract with the Clips had originally been set to expire at the end of the 2018/19 season.
“Doc is one of the top coaches in the NBA, coming off one of his finest seasons since joining the Clippers,” owner Steve Ballmer said in a statement. “We trust Doc to lead a competitive, tough, hard-working team while upholding a culture of accountability expected to resonate throughout the organization.”
Rivers, who joined the Clippers in 2013, led the team to four consecutive seasons of 51 or more wins before the roster underwent major changes in the summer of 2017. The Clips traded Chris Paul to Houston last summer, then sent Blake Griffin to Detroit prior to this season’s trade deadline, leading to speculation that Rivers may follow his star players out of Los Angeles. However, today’s announcement confirms that won’t be the case.
Despite losing his longtime stars, Rivers still managed to lead the Clippers to a 42-40 record in 2017/18, keeping the team within striking distance of a playoff spot until the final week of the regular season. He now has a 259-151 (.632) record in five years with the franchise, though the club has failed to make a deep playoff run during that stretch, having been eliminated twice in the first round and twice in the second.
Armed with two lottery picks in this month’s draft and more cap flexibility than they would have had with Griffin’s maximum-salary contract on their books, the Clippers will be looking to retool their roster this offseason and return to the playoffs next spring.
“I am proud of the success we have had here over the last five seasons, but there is more work to be done,” Rivers said in a statement today. “We are coming off a year where our team battled through many challenges and much adversity, proving deep talent and even greater potential. I am looking forward to getting back to work on the court to develop our players and compete with the NBA’s elite.”
Bill Plaschke of The Los Angeles Times first reported earlier this month than an extension agreement between the Clippers and Rivers was in the works.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Good for him interesting what he can do with rebuild
good for him indeed. How he has managed to not only keep his job but get extended is amazing to me.
How long has he been with LAC now without absolutely zip to show for it?
The quote he gave about Montrezl Harrell after the season is the perfect example of why he shouldn’t have a job right now. It took him that long to figure it out. The Clippers came into the season with depth, and he didnt use it at all in the first half of the season. Maybe they’re in a better position while they still had Blake Griffin if he wasnt such a massively overrated coach.
glad we have brad In boston
RIP Clippers. Gone before they could even reach a conference finals. On the other hand it’s Lakers town again.
I don’t understand this out all. What top tier free agents are going to want to come. I don’t get the brain trust cause now if they fire Doc his top assistant will take over while they still pay Doc.
The only reason it happened is because Ballmer is an amateur, and is obviously easily manipulated. Doc has always been a smoke and mirrors show.
Docs a good coach when he’s not the gm to. People make so many dumb judgements about the clippers without watching them. He was great this year given the circumstances
He is overrated. The Clippers are the Knicks of the West Coast.
One of the most overrated coaches in league history. All hype, never any results.