Doc Rivers has had a wild ride in Boston. He's 180 degrees away from where he was last year. A year ago, Chuck and I did a call in show where the big debate was whether the Celtics should extend Doc for a year to give him some security heading into this year…. and we were both called crazy for saying he deserved one more year after the 2006-07 debacle.
Now everyone loves Doc Rivers.
"When you've been in basketball as long as I have, you forget just how emotionally attached people are to you and your team," Rivers said Wednesday. "I've had a million people congratulate me this summer, and you never get tired of it."
You can say what you want about Doc's coaching ability… but he's got to be the most likable guy around. He's self deprecating:
"I tell people all the time, I'm no smarter today than I was the day before, but winning changes the way you're perceived," he said. "I try to keep it in perspective. It's no different than any other profession, except that in sports it's magnified."
He's turned down most opportunities to cash in on the championship:
"I've said no to almost everything. Look, I'm only 46 years old, this book isn't done. I hope to coach a lot more basketball, have a few more chapters in my life before I could write anything," he said. "My belief is that, 'Let's keep this going as a team here.' We're not done yet."
And he thinks success breeds success
"I never let negative opinions in the past change who I was or what I believed in," he said. "And it's the same way now. I don't know what will happen this season, but I do think winning breeds hunger, not apathy."
What can I say. I like the guy. I don't always agree with his decisions… but he usually has his head in the right place.
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