Doc Rivers discouraged son Austin from signing with Sixers

Doc and Austin Rivers the sequel might have become a reality this offseason if the former had not put the kibosh on it.

Doc, the Philadelphia 76ers head coach, said this weekend that he pushed his son Austin away from signing with the team as a free agent. Austin instead agreed to a three-year, $10 million deal with the New York Knicks.

“He was high on Philly’s list before I took the job,” said Doc about Austin, per Marc Berman of the New York Post. “It was one of the guards that they wanted. When I took the job, I said, ‘You don’t want that. You got too many other things we have to deal with.’

“For Austin, it’s better,” Doc added. “He’s his own player. Unfortunately for him, me being the dad, he’s just an easy guy to target. I have felt since the separation, it’s been really good for him … I kept telling him, ‘New York is a great place,’ I had a great experience there. That’s what I shared with him.”

Doc already had the experience of coaching Austin on the LA Clippers for four seasons from 2015 to 2018. The father-son partnership indeed made them a target of ire in the media and even in their own locker room too.

While the two will not be reuniting in Philadelphia, Austin will have a better opportunity to continue carving out his own path. Doc will also have the chance to coach another member of his family now.