[Bill Simmons] Doc Rivers on coaching James Harden: “It was challenging, more because we were fighting two things—and not like visually fighting—it was James is so good at playing one way, and the way I believe you have to play to win, in some ways, is different.”
Doc Rivers was a guest on the Bill Simmons podcast and spoke on his time with the Philadelphia 76ers and speaks on whether or not he enjoyed coaching James Harden. #Rockets #NBA #NBATwitter @johngranato @LanceZierlein pic.twitter.com/HaPDDB71N2
— ESPN 97.5 Houston (@espn975) June 13, 2023
by NoBarracuda199
4 Comments
Doc Rivers the notorious winner shares his secrets to winning
More comments from Doc on Harden’s play in the playoffs:
[https://twitter.com/espn975/status/1668615998549762050](https://twitter.com/espn975/status/1668615998549762050)
**Full excerpt:**
On coaching James:
>”It was challenging, more because we were fighting two things—and not like visually fighting—it was James is so good at playing one way, and the way I believe you have to play to win, in some ways, is different. Because it’s a lot of giving up the ball, moving the ball, coming back to the ball. I would have loved to have him younger, when that was easier for him because giving up the ball and getting back the ball is hard. It’s physical, it’s exhausting.
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>So, it would have been interesting if I would have had him younger where he could have done that more. Coming off of dribble handoffs, going down the hill. He didn’t finish as well as he finished [in Houston] because he’s older, and that happens.
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>So, yeah, at times, to get him to move it and get him to play the way I needed him to play—I thought the first half of the year, we were the best team in the game. I thought James was playing perfect basketball. He was the point guard of the team. He was still scoring, but he was doing more playmaking and scoring. Then in the second half, he started scoring more, trying to score more, and I thought we got stagnant at times. I thought we changed.” (1:01:13)
On what he feels goes wrong with James when the playoffs come around:
>”What makes James great is that he’s one of the best individual players to ever play the game,” Rivers said. “Ball-handling, handles the ball, dribbles the ball, attacks. But that also allows you to attack—you know where he’s at, and you know where the ball is at.
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>So, in the playoffs, when teams are game-planning against you each game, double-teaming, taking the ball out of your hand, making it harder, it’s easier to do that to James compared to … How do you take Steph [Curry] out of the game?”
Will doc rivers has been carried everywhere he’s been and still not won anything
Lol everyone in the comments is here attacking Doc when he’s right
Harden’s style of basketball is not conducive to winning. You can’t be always on ball. It makes your offense too stagnant and predictable and therefore easy to counter
Even when he had a great chance like 2018 he eventually just got got gassed and chucked 3s