Doc Rivers' Post-Elimination Press Conference Was Quite a Ride
Doc Rivers and the Philadelphia 76ers bowed out of the NBA playoffs Thursday night in spectacular fashion. James Harden, their big in-season acquisition, was an absolute bust and only took two shots in the second half as the Miami Heat won the game 99-90 and the series 4-2. In his postgame press conference, Doc Rivers came across as hilariously incompetent.
Rivers pulled his starters late in Game 6 in a sign that he was giving up. After the game he claimed he did so because he determined the Sixers simply weren't as good as the Heat. Essentially he gave up.
Doc Rivers: "I came to the conclusion at the end of this game that we were not good enough to beat Miami."
— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) May 13, 2022
Rivers has repeatedly said that they need to improve the roster.
Yes, Rivers threw in the towel in an elimination game, then essentially admitted it during the postgame presser.
Rivers was asked if he was worried about his job security after the Sixers didn't live up to expectation. It didn't go well:
Doc Rivers response about his job security. Question is from Howard Eskin. pic.twitter.com/EBHupc2j11
— David Grzybowski (@DavidGrzyTV) May 13, 2022
The fact that Rivers is trying to claim no one picked the Sixers to do anything during his time there is some wild stuff. When he arrived in 2020, many heralded the move as the final piece Philly needed to take a young roster into contention. Entering this season, despite the Ben Simmons drama, many believed the Sixers would be a contender. They still had an MVP candidate in Joel Embiid and enough talent to win the Eastern Conference. Once they traded for Harden, they were certainly pegged as a potential title winner.
The idea that Rivers and the Sixers were plucky underdogs no one believed in is hilarious and just shows how out of touch Rivers is.