How long will Austin Rivers play college ball?

[Chris]

Do you guys really think he wants to play for his father?

If you were in his position, would you want to play for your father?  When you finally get paid, and get to be independent, and have the possibility to be the biggest star in the world...and your Dad is your boss?  I don't think that is something he is looking forward to.

Why not?  I don't see how his coach will affect how much he gets paid or how independent he'll be.

Plus Doc is a cool dude, how many guys haven't liked Doc since he's been here?  He's a players' coach.  In this league the players are going to affect him much more than the coach, and who wouldn't want to play with the Big 3 + Rondo?

I don't see what the big deal is.  For every kid there is out there that doesn't like his dad and wouldn't want to be around him there's one who wouldn't want to be coached by anyone else.  There's no reason to lean in one direction or the other.

It's similar to why it's not always the best idea to move in together with your best friend.  I guess at shooting guard there'd be less for Austin to get yelled at for than if he's at PG, but Doc has that fiery temper that, unless Austin is very thick skinned, could cause some serious filial funks....

no idea if I used "filial" correctly...

Yes, is certainly an issue, but to, the bigger issue is the team chemistry in general.  To have a rookie come in who is the coaches son, there are three things that can happen.

1. The coach gives him preferential treatment, and the player ends up being hated by his teammates, and has a hard time adjusting.

2. The coach is extra hard on his son, possibly to prove that number 1 is not the case.  And that hurts his development.

3. The coach is very professional about it, but the other players perceive #1 is happening, when they are really being beat out legitimately by the young player, and again, the young player has a very hard time of it.

I just feel like the dynamics of team sports, particularly at the NBA level where everyone has big egos and came up being "the man" are extremely delicate.  Doc knows this better than anyone, and I am sure, for that reason alone, he knows it would be a bad idea to coach Austin...and I am sure Austin has picked this up himself.

[mgent]

Do you guys really think he wants to play for his father?

If you were in his position, would you want to play for your father?  When you finally get paid, and get to be independent, and have the possibility to be the biggest star in the world...and your Dad is your boss?  I don't think that is something he is looking forward to.

Why not?  I don't see how his coach will affect how much he gets paid or how independent he'll be.

Plus Doc is a cool dude, how many guys haven't liked Doc since he's been here?  He's a players' coach.  In this league the players are going to affect him much more than the coach, and who wouldn't want to play with the Big 3 + Rondo?

I don't see what the big deal is.  For every kid there is out there that doesn't like his dad and wouldn't want to be around him there's one who wouldn't want to be coached by anyone else.  There's no reason to lean in one direction or the other.

It's similar to why it's not always the best idea to move in together with your best friend.  I guess at shooting guard there'd be less for Austin to get yelled at for than if he's at PG, but Doc has that fiery temper that, unless Austin is very thick skinned, could cause some serious filial funks....

no idea if I used "filial" correctly...

So what?  Do you think he won't get yelled at for doing something wrong under another coach, or that Doc will just yell at him for no reason because he's his son?

Why are people acting like Doc is a bad coach?  The reason you don't move in with your best friend is because you truly get to know them and once you do sometimes you don't want to be friends anymore.  Father and son have already lived together all their life and know everything about each other.  How would making the move to coach and player be any different?

If anything I'd assume he'd want to spend more time with Doc.  He's one of those cool dads that played in the NBA and now coaches probably more than 1 of his favorite players growing up.  Add that to the fact that Doc probably wasn't around as much as your average father so chances are they aren't already sick of being around each other and he's probably not one of those "all in your business" dads.

Austin's an adult, he's gonna do his own thing.  Doc isn't gonna get in his way, chances are he'll only be supportive of his extremely successful son.

[Chris]

Why are people acting like Doc is a bad coach?  

Doc Rivers is a great coach, particularly when it comes to relating to players...but he knows that pro athletes are insane.  He has lived through it and knows that his son will have enough to deal with on his own.  To have to also deal with the stigma of being "Daddy's boy", as he is trying to make a name for himself is something I don't think Doc has any interest in subjecting his son to, just like I don't think Austin has any interest in going through.

Whether Doc can handle or not is irrevalent.  It has to do with perception, both by the public, casting Doc's shadow even further over his son, and by his teammates.  It is the last thing a talented young player needs.

[wiley]

Do you guys really think he wants to play for his father?

If you were in his position, would you want to play for your father?  When you finally get paid, and get to be independent, and have the possibility to be the biggest star in the world...and your Dad is your boss?  I don't think that is something he is looking forward to.

Why not?  I don't see how his coach will affect how much he gets paid or how independent he'll be.

Plus Doc is a cool dude, how many guys haven't liked Doc since he's been here?  He's a players' coach.  In this league the players are going to affect him much more than the coach, and who wouldn't want to play with the Big 3 + Rondo?

I don't see what the big deal is.  For every kid there is out there that doesn't like his dad and wouldn't want to be around him there's one who wouldn't want to be coached by anyone else.  There's no reason to lean in one direction or the other.

It's similar to why it's not always the best idea to move in together with your best friend.  I guess at shooting guard there'd be less for Austin to get yelled at for than if he's at PG, but Doc has that fiery temper that, unless Austin is very thick skinned, could cause some serious filial funks....

no idea if I used "filial" correctly...

So what?  Do you think he won't get yelled at for doing something wrong under another coach, or that Doc will just yell at him for no reason because he's his son?

Why are people acting like Doc is a bad coach?  The reason you don't move in with your best friend is because you truly get to know them and once you do sometimes you don't want to be friends anymore.  Father and son have already lived together all their life and know everything about each other.  How would making the move to coach and player be any different?

If anything I'd assume he'd want to spend more time with Doc.  He's one of those cool dads that played in the NBA and now coaches probably more than 1 of his favorite players growing up.  Add that to the fact that Doc probably wasn't around as much as your average father so chances are they aren't already sick of being around each other and he's probably not one of those "all in your business" dads.

Austin's an adult, he's gonna do his own thing.  Doc isn't gonna get in his way, chances are he'll only be supportive of his extremely successful son.

I didn't act like Doc was a bad coach.  He's my favorite NBA coach by a long way.  There's no rule that says it's bad to coach your son or be coached by your dad.  I would think it would be case by case.  But in my opinion, as Chris described better than me, there are potential pitfalls worth avoiding.  See Chris' responses above....

[mgent]

Do you guys really think he wants to play for his father?

If you were in his position, would you want to play for your father?  When you finally get paid, and get to be independent, and have the possibility to be the biggest star in the world...and your Dad is your boss?  I don't think that is something he is looking forward to.

Why not?  I don't see how his coach will affect how much he gets paid or how independent he'll be.

Plus Doc is a cool dude, how many guys haven't liked Doc since he's been here?  He's a players' coach.  In this league the players are going to affect him much more than the coach, and who wouldn't want to play with the Big 3 + Rondo?

I don't see what the big deal is.  For every kid there is out there that doesn't like his dad and wouldn't want to be around him there's one who wouldn't want to be coached by anyone else.  There's no reason to lean in one direction or the other.

It's similar to why it's not always the best idea to move in together with your best friend.  I guess at shooting guard there'd be less for Austin to get yelled at for than if he's at PG, but Doc has that fiery temper that, unless Austin is very thick skinned, could cause some serious filial funks....

no idea if I used "filial" correctly...

Yes, is certainly an issue, but to, the bigger issue is the team chemistry in general.  To have a rookie come in who is the coaches son, there are three things that can happen.

1. The coach gives him preferential treatment, and the player ends up being hated by his teammates, and has a hard time adjusting.

2. The coach is extra hard on his son, possibly to prove that number 1 is not the case.  And that hurts his development.

3. The coach is very professional about it, but the other players perceive #1 is happening, when they are really being beat out legitimately by the young player, and again, the young player has a very hard time of it.

I just feel like the dynamics of team sports, particularly at the NBA level where everyone has big egos and came up being "the man" are extremely delicate.  Doc knows this better than anyone, and I am sure, for that reason alone, he knows it would be a bad idea to coach Austin...and I am sure Austin has picked this up himself.

Again, Doc is not a bad coach.  What makes 1 and 2 more likely to happen than them just getting along fine?

As for number 3, if we're still looking at the Big 4 that'll never happen.  These guys will NEVER be threatened by a rookie and even if they did they wouldn't take it out on Doc, the team, or especially the player himself.  We're talking about 4 of the least selfish players in the league, if anything they'd just try to integrate him and make him better like the Big 3 did with Rondo, and like they did with each other when they came together.

[Who]

As a general statement, I would be worried about putting a son and a father together ... but in some instances, if they have a strong enough relationship, I think that bond could help them.

The father, the coach, will likely have seen more of his son's games than anyone else (and seen his son in different systems) and should have a very detailed knowledge of his son's skill-set + personality. He should know how to best use him and how best to handle him from a man-management point of view.

As for the son, he'll be loyal to his coach. Execute the game plan. It may also be easier for him to take instructions to him.

But for those good things to happen ... it'd need to be a very strong relationship.

I doubt many father-son relationships could handle the pressure of the situation though. I'd be very wary of putting them together.

[Chris]

I will say that it would be just fine for Doc to coach him later in his career, once Austin has made a name for himself.  I just think it is a very bad idea to bring a kid into the league and immediately have him under the shadow of his father. 

However, once he has proven that he belongs, and has made a name for himself as Austin Rivers, and not Doc Rivers' son, I think it could absolutely work out.  But before that, you are just asking for trouble, and adding unnecessary pressure to an already pressure packed situation.

[mgent]

Why are people acting like Doc is a bad coach?  

Doc Rivers is a great coach, particularly when it comes to relating to players...but he knows that pro athletes are insane.  He has lived through it and knows that his son will have enough to deal with on his own.  To have to also deal with the stigma of being "Daddy's boy", as he is trying to make a name for himself is something I don't think Doc has any interest in subjecting his son to, just like I don't think Austin has any interest in going through.

Whether Doc can handle or not is irrevalent.  It has to do with perception, both by the public, casting Doc's shadow even further over his son, and by his teammates.  It is the last thing a talented young player needs.

Okay, so now you're saying it wouldn't mess with the team, just cause perception issues off the court.  I could care less if that's the trade-off of pairing a good player with a good coach.

I don't think players care what other players think about them.  KG has to deal with the "stigma" of being a dirty player/being hated by players around the league.  That's the trade-off he has to deal with for getting in players' heads on the court.  It doesn't stop every team and every coach in the league from wanting him.  When he hears things like Noah calling him ugly he doesn't think "Oh no I have to overcome the public's and my opponent's perception of me," he thinks, "Job well done."

It'd be great if we could avoid every off-court issue, but that's not a big enough reason to turn away talent.  Kevin Garnett can be hated by every single person not living in Boston and Austin Rivers can be the biggest "Daddy's boy" in the world, it doesn't matter if we're winning games.  I tend to worry more about what's happening on the court than off.

[MBz]

I don't worry about the on court issues, I'd be more worried about the off court issues.  Can Doc handle Austin Rivers going to the clubs, the women, etc etc?  That's when the real father figure is going to come in. 

[mgent]

I will say that it would be just fine for Doc to coach him later in his career, once Austin has made a name for himself.  I just think it is a very bad idea to bring a kid into the league and immediately have him under the shadow of his father. 

However, once he has proven that he belongs, and has made a name for himself as Austin Rivers, and not Doc Rivers' son, I think it could absolutely work out.  But before that, you are just asking for trouble, and adding unnecessary pressure to an already pressure packed situation.

These guys are paid to perform under pressure though.  If this kid can't handle the pressure of being his coach's son then I don't want to see what he does the first time he has to play Dwayne Wade, or take a game-winning shot.

Also I don't necessarily think he'll automatically be under Doc's shadow.  This is a player's league, people watch and care about the players not the coach.  Heck I bet more than half of the NBA fan-base can't even name 20 coaches in the league.  How he plays is what people are gonna care the most about, way more than who he's related to.

[mgent]

I don't worry about the on court issues, I'd be more worried about the off court issues.  Can Doc handle Austin Rivers going to the clubs, the women, etc etc?  That's when the real father figure is going to come in. 

Okay, I'll be checking the scores of actual games while you're checking how long Austin Rivers is grounded for.

[housecall]

Watch for DJ's(nephew)Nick Johnson in a yr or so...he's in the class of 2011 as well...i saw him play last yr in a Vegas summer league.He committed to Arizona State last i knew.He is a 6'3"combo-type guard with some similarites of DJ's in his game.The announcers at the time i saw him play expects him to go to the next level.  

[EmilioBonilla]

Hey guys, here's an example:

George Karl coaching his son Koby Carl in Denver. Anyone know they turned out? Koby traded or waived I don't remember which one. Anyone know how it affected the Denver locker room? Both Doc and George are very well respected coaches in the league and I never heard a single bad thing about George coaching his son. I just don't think that it would be that big of an issue for Doc and Austin.