Orlando Magic: 5 players who’ve got next for the Basketball Hall of Fame
Orlando Magic: Next up for the Hall of Fame
Doc Rivers
The Basketball Hall of Fame is not just for players. There is a whole wing for coaches and contributors to the game. This weekend, for instance, Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings coach Rick Adelman made it to Springfield. As did Villanova coach Jay Wright.
Coaches can go in while they are still active (they have to be active for 25 years). But usually, the Hall waits for a coach to retire before bestowing the honor upon them.
Orlando might one day see Stan Van Gundy enter the Hall. Those chances feel small. It feels like the first Magic coach to get the honor of going into the Hall of Fame might well be Doc Rivers.
And the hard part to believe might be that Rivers will become eligible for the Hall of Fame in only four years. He has coached continuously since the Magic hired him during the 1999-2000 season (the famed Heart & Hustle team).
Rivers has a strong case to be in the Hall of Fame whenever the committee decides to extend the invitation.
Rivers has a career record of 992-704. He will hit the mythical 1,000-win mark this season in his second year with the Philadelphia 76ers. Rivers went 171-168 in five seasons with the Magic, his lowest win percentage with any of his teams.
He won the NBA title with the Boston Celtics in 2008. He guided the LA Clippers to once unforeseen heights, marking their best seasons with the Lob City team. He jumped over to the 76ers last year and led them to the best record in the Eastern Conference.
A lot of his story is still unwritten. But it feels like all the above adds up to a Hall of Fame resume already.
As the Magic learned in his five years with the team, he was a master at motivating players and getting the most of them. He wrung a lot out of those poorly built rosters and allowed Tracy McGrady (another Hall of Famer) to thrive.
That was, of course, only the beginning for Rivers in his coaching career. And he will get his Hall of Fame call eventually.