The Philadelphia 76ers and Doc Rivers partnership, while still fresh in the memory, has been too overshadowed at this point to even persist. It’s dead. Unfortunately, it seems like the latter is still doing his earnest for a necromancy act that no one’s really asking for.
Rivers, now the man on the sidelines for a Milwaukee squad currently in a state of relative flux, has had little relevant success for almost two decades now, and naturally, as the poster child for having a lack of accountability, he’s now trying to shift the blame for his lack of success in Philadelphia onto an innocent bunch.
Doc Rivers’ latest wild take about 76ers fans makes zero sense
Speaking on the Bill Simmons Podcast, Rivers briefly touched on what it was like for his players suiting up at home, to which he dropped a perplexing response.
"Usually, you play better at home. The only place that I thought it was difficult to play at home is in Philly, because of the crowd. I thought it affected our players some."
For the record, the 76ers consistently posted some of the best home records in the NBA. Philadelphia turned in an 82-36 win-loss card while playing at the Wells Fargo Center in the three seasons where Rivers was coach, the sixth-best mark in the NBA during that stretch.
With the datum erected as a clear rebuttal to his statement, Rivers must simply be taking a shot at the Philadelphia faithful, which is known across the country as one of the most passionate fanbases in all of US sports.
But to me and to many, this is another case of Rivers going through the eye of the needle to conjure yet another excuse for the team’s lack of meaningful success under his wing. No one’s sure if he still pays attention to the numbers, but time is definitely a fickle friend.
Doc Rivers, making an enemy out of 76ers fan probably won’t serve you well, especially at a time where the Bucks could be heading to uncertain waters.