Report: Doc Rivers Struggled to Manage Clippers After Kawhi, George's Arrival

In the wake of Doc Rivers' departure from the Los Angeles Clippers, the 58-year-old reportedly had difficulty managing the team's roster after Kawhi Leonard and Paul George were acquired last summer. 

Per The Athletic's Jovan Buha, outside observers felt that Rivers was unable "to manage the demands of adhering to his new stars, Leonard and George, while simultaneously sustaining the cooperation from the old guard of the roster—mainly Williams, Harrell and Patrick Beverley." 

Buha also noted that the Clippers were comfortable parting ways with Rivers for a number of reasons: 

"The organization ultimately determined that the locker room, as currently constructed, lacked the requisite leadership and mettle to be true a championship team. Players weren’t necessarily put in the best position to unlock a better version of themselves, either, with the team not always making appropriate or timely adjustments, league sources said."

There were several criticisms directed toward Rivers during the Clippers' postseason run, including some from within the organization. 

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported on the issues players had with Rivers' coaching after the Clippers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets:

"Rivers had several strategic decisions that left players scratching their heads, such as the decision not to ride a bigger lineup against Nikola Jokic, choosing rotations that did not prioritize more minutes for JaMychal Green and various defensive adjustments. The team also never came together in terms of chemistry or camaraderie inside the bubble."

The reported issues date back before the playoffs, with Buha noting Kawhi Leonard expressed his unhappiness with being benched late in the first half during a Feb. 11 game against the Philadelphia 76ers:

"As Leonard walked toward the Clippers’ bench, he demonstrably gestured towards Rivers, yelling 'There’s 12 seconds left! We’re down two!' while throwing up his arms in disappointment at the decision to bench him so late in the half.

"An outward display of emotion like that was rare from Leonard. Before Leonard could sit down, Rivers retracted his decision and instead subbed out Lou Williams.

"Williams, who was setting up on the left block to come off of a Harrell screen, sauntered off the floor, pausing for a second to throw his arms up at Rivers to display his displeasure."

Despite the issues behind the scenes, the Clippers were able to finish with the second-best record in the Western Conference during the regular season (49-23). They had flashes of becoming a playoff juggernaut, as evidenced by their 154-111 win over the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the first-round series. 

Things looked to be on track in the Western Conference semifinals when the Clippers took a 3-1 series lead over the Denver Nuggets, but they proceeded to lose three straight despite holding double-digit leads in each of those games. 

Rivers did post winning records in each of his seven seasons and six playoff appearances as Clippers head coach, but the team never advanced past the second round of the playoffs.