The NBA 2K Players Tournament might seem like mindless entertainment to tide us over in the absence of actual sports, but Doc Rivers is actually gaining some interesting insights from it.
In an interview this week with Miriam Swanson of the OC Register, the LA Clippers head coach said that he has gotten a window into players’ mindsets by watching the video game tournament pitting NBA stars against each other.
“You are finding out like who they like, who they [think] can make shots,” Rivers said. “They’re letting some of the strangest guys take big shots. I’m like, ‘Wow, that’s interesting.’ Especially in the two-for-one situations that these guys are all doing, it’s funny who they swing the ball to. So it’s been a teacher in that way, for sure.”
Rivers, who also said that he has been rewatching some of his old games as a player and a coach during the current quarantine period, added that he gave Kevin Durant “crap” for playing as the Clippers in the tournament and losing.
The veteran head coach Rivers has two of his players, Patrick Beverley and Montrezl Harrell, participating in the nationally-televised affair with both advancing to the semifinal round. The other two semifinalists are a pair of Phoenix Suns in Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton.
While the tournament has already provided some great viral moments, it is quite surprising that it is providing some useful real-world takeaways as well.
