Doc Rivers On Leaving Celtics: “It Was Just Time”
By Mike Dyce
Whenever someone leaves a job or city they’ve called home for a long time it is always an emotional experience. All the negatives that played a role in your decision to leave are forgotten and all the good things come to mind. Doc Rivers has coached the Boston Celtics for almost an entire decade before finally leaving to head to Los Angeles.
“I always knew when I took the job with Boston that I would love the Celtics,” said Rivers, in his first public comments since he entered negotiations with the Clippers, via ESPN.com. “I knew I would love the tradition and the players. But I had no idea how much I would fall in love with the city and the people in it. Honestly, I get emotional thinking about it. I will cherish every single moment I had in Boston.”
But whether Rivers regrets the decision to leave he had a simple answer.
“It was just time,” Rivers answered. “I really don’t think it would be fair to get into all of that right now. I made a decision to talk with all of the Boston media following my press conference with the Clippers [on Wednesday], and I will honor that.”
“I’ll explain it to everyone then. But to say I was dying to get out of Boston, dying to leave the Celtics is just wrong. That’s not how it was. That’s not how I felt.”