Doc Rivers Fulfils Charles Barkley’s Request as All-Star Coaching Gig Confirmed

Luck has favored the new Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers in the last few weeks. After getting his role in the NBA back, he has now been announced as the coach of the Eastern Conference team for the All-Star weekend. Surprisingly, this comes right after Charles Barkley‘s request on ‘Inside the NBA’, just a few days back. For the Bucks to remain the 2nd seed in the East and seal the coaching stint for Rivers at the All-Star weekend, they needed multiple results to go their way.

Coach Joe Mazzula from the Boston Celtics cannot make it to the All-Star game this year as he was the coach of ‘Team Giannis’ last season. The same coach cannot be repeated for two continuous years according to the NBA rule, which makes the coach of the second-best team the new All-Star coach. To everyone’s shock, the New York Knicks, the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Cleveland Cavaliers all took a loss today, which has now made Doc Rivers the new All-Star coach for the East. 

Barkley shared on TNT that, if Rivers gets selected as the All-Star coach, he should give his money to Adrian Griffin, who coached the Bucks till January 23, before his eventual firing.

 As per Barkley’s request, Rivers assured that he “plans to give Adrian Griffin his All-Star ring and bonus”.

Well, coach Doc decided to be humble and fair, which fans continue to appreciate.

Who will replace Doc Rivers for the All-Star weekend?

The 2008 champion believes it would be “ridiculously bad” to coach an All-Star team, just after a week back in the NBA. Instead, Rivers is planning to send his assistant/staff to Indianapolis for the big game on February 18. And, that would mostly be Pete Dominguez, who just joined the Bucks along with coach Doc, or assistant coach Joe Prunty, who served as an interim coach during Griffin’s firing. Dominguez previously worked with Rivers as a video coordinator for the Los Angeles Clippers and later as a coaching associate for the Philadelphia 76ers.

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It is safe to say that Dominguez and Prunty did not see this coming, but this is a big opportunity, given the exposure in an All-Star weekend. Things are not finalized yet, but Rivers has assured that he will run his plan through Adam Silver soon.

Read more: Doc Rivers Reveals 2 Reasons Why He Accepted Bucks Offer and Rejected Other NBA Teams

Hold your seats for more surprises! Do you agree with Doc Rivers’s decision?