A new Doc Rivers meme has been born (in the same vein as the many that had already preceded it).
Rivers and the Philadelphia 76ers suffered a familiar fate on Sunday, getting thrashed in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Boston Celtics. Though the game was tight in the first half, the 76ers got hit with a Boston haymaker in the third quarter, going from tied 55-55 early on in the period to down 88-62 by the end of it. Boston would go on to win by the final of 112-88 as Jayson Tatum set a record for most points ever in a Game 7 with 51 (and added a savage celebration for good measure).
During that third quarter monsoon from the Celtics, the 76ers head coach Rivers went viral for his dejected reaction on the bench. As the game was slipping out of reach with Boston going up 18 midway through the period, Rivers was shown on the ESPN broadcast burying his head in his hands in an expression of pure dismay.
https://twitter.com/ClutchPointsApp/status/1657863884831870976
And just like that, a new meme had been sent down from the heavens. Here were some of the best uses of Rivers’ fresh meme pasta.
https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1657864853703348231
https://twitter.com/jphanned/status/1657859263791009792
https://twitter.com/AhaanRungta/status/1657867988115046401
This script has become all too common for Rivers and the 76ers. Over his entire coaching career, Rivers is now a miserable 6-10 in Game 7s (including five straight losses) and has not made it out of the second round since 2012 (when he was still coaching the Boston Celtics). It’s even worse for the 76ers, who haven’t been to a conference finals under any coach since 2001. That is a span of over two decades and includes the entire “Process” era (despite Joel Embiid finally breaking out this season and winning NBA MVP).
Rivers has gone viral countless times before for his memeable expressions on the sideline (usually ones of disbelief and confusion). But many 76ers fans will probably be hoping that Rivers is fired and that this is the final meme that he generates as their head coach.
