Philadelphia 76ers Doc Rivers wins his 1000th game: Ranking his top 5 moments as an NBA head coach
Doc Rivers has reached a major NBA coaching milestone with his 1,000th win via an impressive road victory vs.a much-improved Chicago Bulls.
The win had to be especially sweet for the coach given Doc Rivers is from Chicago. The former point guard -- who played 14 seasons in the NBA mainly with the Atlanta Hawks -- won an NBA championship as a head coach with the Boston Celtics in 2008.
Doc Rivers who has another Finals appearance to his Boston Celtics head coaching credit, changed the culture in his time with the Los Angeles Clippers, and has built a consistent winner in Philadelphia despite all the ongoing drama with Ben Simmons.
He was a political science major at Marquette -- from where he graduated in 1985. Doc Rivers was the 31st pick in the 1983 NBA draft and made one All-Star team. The 1999-00 NBA Coach of the Year has 23 years as a head coach under his belt, so let's look at his top 5 moments as one of the best coaches of his era.
Win No. 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣
With the victory tonight, Doc Rivers becomes just the 10th coach in NBA history to reach the 1,000 win mark 👏 https://t.co/AamvWReu2H
#5 Doc Rivers gets his first NBA win on November 3, 1999 vs. the Detroit Pistons 103-94
The Orlando Magic finished 41-41 in Doc Rivers' 1st season. He was named NBA Coach of the Year for adding stability to a Magic team mired in ineptitude. Pat Garrity scored 20 points, and Darrell Armstrong had 17 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals in the win.
Current Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams scored 12 for Orlando. The Pistons were paced by Grant Hill's 30 points, and his former Duke Blue Devils teammate Christian Laettner had 18 points.
Look how pumped Doc Rivers was tonight
10th coach in NBA history with 1000 wins
https://t.co/F0XiX0QW81
#4 Boston Celtics close out Detroit Pistons 89-81 on May 30, 2008
Paul Pierce had 27 points and 8 rebounds, Ray Allen scored 17 and Kevin Garnett had 16 points and 6 rebounds as the Boston Celtics closed out the Detroit Pistons on the way to their 17th NBA championship.
The Celtics overcame a 10-point deficit in the 4th quarter, as the Detroit Pistons lost in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals for the 3rd time in as many years. It would be the Celtics' first trip back to the NBA Finals since 1987, and their most heated rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, was their opponent.