Doc Rivers Influenced Patrick Beverley’s Free Agency Decision

Doc Rivers helped the 76ers this summer despite being away from the team.

We’re nearly one week into the NBA’s 2023 free agency period, and the Philadelphia 76ers have a new player added to the roster in veteran guard, Patrick Beverley.

The Sixers have been linked to Beverley in past seasons, but a deal never came to life. This summer, the Sixers pursued Beverley and had the former Chicago Bulls guard considering a move to the City of Brotherly Love for the 2023-2024 season.

Although the Sixers no longer employ Doc Rivers as their head coach, Beverley told listeners of The Pat Bev Pod that he reached out to his former coach for some free agency advice.

“Before I like to make any like life decision, I hit Doc,” Beverley said on his podcast recently. “Doc is a mentor. Doc is damn near a father figure. Doc is everything. I need something, and I need answers, I need help, I hit Doc.”

For the last three seasons, Rivers coached the Sixers following his seven-year run as the head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers. During a handful of those seasons in Los Angeles, Rivers coached Beverley. Therefore, the coach and the player know each other well, with the former influencing his most recent move.

“I hit Doc… ‘I might go to Philly. Obviously, you was there. How’d you like the situation?’ Now this is a Hall of Fame coach that just got fired, and his response in exact words, ‘I love Philadelphia for you. They need you. You will be great with Joel. James, he respects you. You will be great with him. If I had you last season, we would have been a different team.’ Shoutout Doc Rivers,” Beverley finished. “That’s my man. Shoutout Doc. Exact words. Once Doc gave me the greenlight, I called my agent back with my agent like, ‘Man, give me the end of the day. I’m gonna talk to some more teams, you feel me? I’m gonna talk to Boston. I’m gonna talk to Washington’, but when Doc gave me the green … I trust Doc.”

Rivers had no incentive to talk up his most recent former organization. After inking a five-year deal with the Sixers back in 2020, Rivers’ time was cut short. Following a second-round exit for the third-straight season, 76ers’ President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey suggested a change in direction at the head coach position to Sixers’ ownership. Not long after, the move was made.

Beverley listened to Rivers and signed on to join the Sixers for the next season. He’ll play for first-year 76ers head coach Nick Nurse, who the Sixers hired to replace Rivers. While there is still plenty of time for the offseason to play out, Beverley remains Philadelphia’s only new acquisition so far since the 2023 NBA Draft and the opening of free agency.