WALTHAM -- During a timeout in Game 3, Marquis Daniels pulled Doc Rivers aside and spoke into his ear as the coach listened over the noise of the crowd.
Rivers has an open communication policy with his players, welcoming any advice or suggestions they have in games, practice, or whenever an idea hits them.
I listen to my players, Rivers said on Saturday. They are the ones on the floor, honestly. I can only see so much, and so can my staff. I talk to them all either right before the game or after the game, rather, and tomorrow morning. Some will text. We have an open communication.
With that open line of conversation comes in-game adjustments. Depending on matchups or trends in the game, the Celtics could have to change their strategy at any point in the night.
Take the reaction to the Miami Heats small lineup in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals as an example. The Celtics began feeding the ball to Kevin Garnett and they successfully exploited the size difference, cutting the Heat's series lead to 2-1.
The C's have confidence in their coach to make the necessary changes for a win.
That's what he gets paid for, joked Rajon Rondo, before adding on a more serious note, You look at his resume. Doc, with this team, he's been pretty successful the last four or five years. He's a great coach. He knows what he's doing. He's being paid the big bucks. He's showing up to work every day and making adjustments. I'm biased, but I think he's the best coach in the league.
Boston Celtics
With all of his success as a head coach, Rivers continues to take his players feedback into consideration.
I always kid them, he smiled. I usually say, When you want to make an adjustment, it's usually because your guy is kicking your butt, so you want to try to change the coverage somehow. And I joke and say, Only team adjustments will we make, not individual adjustments. We laugh about that a lot.