The Los Angeles Clippers do not appear like they’re going to be in the market for a new head coach. According to a report by Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times, the team is close to coming to terms with Doc Rivers on an extension that will keep the veteran head coach in Los Angeles.
Rivers has been at the helm with the Clippers since the 2013-14 campaign, and during his first four years in charge, Los Angeles made it to the postseason. This year, despite injuries and the fact that the team traded away Chris Paul before the season and Blake Griffin near the trade deadline, the Clippers narrowly missed out on making it back to the playoffs.
There had been reports that Rivers was essentially counting down the days until he and the organization parted ways, but Plaschke reports that an agreement between the two sides to keep him around is all but official.
“Although nothing has been made official, all indications are that Rivers and Ballmer have reached an agreement on a multiyear extension that will keep Rivers here for a remodeling job that will begin soon,” Plaschke wrote.
Rivers has accrued a 259-151 record during his tenure in Los Angeles, and keeping him around appears to be an indication that the Clippers don’t want to go through a complete rebuild. The team could lose DeAndre Jordan, Austin Rivers, and Milos Teodosic in free agency this summer, but will have a pair of lottery picks and will almost certainly attempt to make a splash, either in free agency or through a trade.
(Via Los Angeles Times)
