UPDATE 7:38 pm: The Celtics and Clippers have both confirmed that Doc Rivers has signed to coach the Clippers, this is done.
One interesting side note on the compensation package deal — it specifies the two teams cannot trade players until after next season, not with a third team or in any other combination. There will be no Garnett trade for DeAndre Jordan. In theory the Lakers could get Paul Pierce if the Celtics bought him out and made him a free agent, but that is not happening, the Celtics will tried to trade both men to get something back for them.
Rivers spoke with Jackie McMullen of ESPN about why he made the move: “It was just time.”
3:35 pm: When things dragged out a little with the Clippers finalizing a contract with Doc Rivers there was a moment of hesitation — aren’t we past these days with the Clippers?
We are. It’s done. Doc Rivers has signed his deal with the Clippers to be their coach, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports and now confirmed by other sources. Rivers has a three-year, $21 million contract with Los Angeles. He will be introduced at a press conferenced Wednesday.
Rivers’ arrival pretty much locks in what was already pretty set — you can expect Chris Paul to re-sign with the Clippers. He will become a free agent July 1 because he gets more money that way than just signing an extension, but he will be back. That alone is worth the money the Clippers are paying Rivers.
The Celtics will get a first round pick back from the Clippers, but the deal is a complex one, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com points out.
Doc Rivers' compensation agreement states that Celtics and Clippers can't exchange players until the end of the '13-'14 season, source says.
— Ken Berger (@KBergNBA) June 25, 2013
The Clippers are a roster on the cusp of contention (they won 56 games last year but were eliminated in the first round) and the feeling among Los Angeles fans is this puts them over the top. They think they are in the mix with the Thunder and Spurs in the West, the Heat in the East as contenders.
It’s not going to be that easy. The Clippers need a steadier defense and we’ll see if Rivers’ coaching can do that — he had great defenses in Boston with Tom Thibodeau as his assistant and Kevin Garnett in the paint. Can Rivers bring that to the Clippers without those two key elements?
The Clippers need to get more out of DeAndre Jordan — consistently and on the defensive end — to really made a difference (or move him to get a defensive anchor big man). Fans will put some of that on Doc Rivers, but it’s really on Jordan. Rivers will help the Clippers but they are a piece or two away from really contending.