The Los Angeles Clippers President, General Manager, and Coach Doc Rivers, received a lot of criticism when he traded for his son Austin Rivers. A lot of people said that Rivers was trying to help his son’s career and wasn’t thinking about the teams needs. Although the criticism was heard from all places, Doc and his son know that finding balance and tuning people out is the best medicine.
According to Harvey Araton of the New York Times:
In a separate interview, addressing the notion of nepotism versus opportunism, Doc Rivers said: “The one thing I’ve learned in life is that you can’t worry about what others say. If you think it’s the right thing to do, or say, you do it.”
Austin Rivers on the other had:
“For the guys who would say, oh, your dad, this and that, you’ve got to the league or here because of him … they’re hypocrites,” Austin Rivers said. “Because I had to go through the same things that anyone’s son went through.”
Austin Rivers hasn’t bursted onto the scene in the NBA, like many thought he would, but he has become a somewhat effective bench player that can really help facilitate as a PG. Do the Clippers need him? Yes, when Chris Paul isn’t on they need someone to command the floor. Maybe it was a good fit after all.
