Doc Rivers takes swipe at fans of his former team 76ers

Feb 6, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers looks on during the third quarter of the game against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Doc Rivers is going after a new enemy this week.

The Milwaukee Bucks head coach Rivers appeared on the latest episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast.” During the episode, Rivers and Simmons discussed the dynamics of playing on the road versus at home as it pertains to the current NBA Finals series between the Boston Celtics and the Dallas Mavericks. In the middle of the discussion, Rivers got in a seemingly unprompted shot at fans of his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers.

“You usually play better at home,” said Rivers. “The only place that I thought it was difficult to play at home was in Philly because of the crowd. I thought it affected our players some.”

Rivers didn’t elaborate further as Simmons quickly steered the conversation back towards the Celtics. You can see the clip below (at around the 44-minute mark).

The former NBA champion head coach Rivers coached the 76ers for three seasons from 2020-23. While Philly was a playoff team in all three of those seasons, they never advanced past the second round and suffered multiple brutal postseason defeats at home over that span (most notably, a Game 7 loss to the Atlanta Hawks in 2021 that resulted in a lot of fallout).

Philly fans are known as some of the most passionate fans in sports but also some of the most fickle. 76ers fans specifically have become notorious for booing their own players (some of whom are still on the roster now).

As for Rivers, he might also be harboring something of a grudge against the fans in Philadelphia. When he returned to the city in February as the head coach of the Bucks, Rivers received a very harsh reception of his own.