The C's championship-winning coach is going into the Basketball Hall of Fame this upcoming weekend. Here's what you need to know about his early tenure in Boston.
This upcoming Saturday, former Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers is going to take his place in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Now 64 years old, Rivers has spent 27 years as a head coach with five different teams: He was with the Orlando Magic for five years before going to the Celtics for nine, the Los Angeles Clippers for seven, the Philadelphia 76ers for three and the Bucks for three.
He's got a laundry list of awards to his name, including winning the league's Coach of the Year in 1999-2000. He was also named one of the 15 greatest coaches in league history in 2021-22.
With the Celtics, he went 416-305 for a .577 winning percentage, helping Boston win an NBA title in 2007-08.
We will be looking closer at his resume with the Celtics in the days leading up to his induction, so today, we start by checking out his first two seasons on the Boston sideline.
2004-05 Celtics
Team record: 45-37 (.549 winning percentage)
Playoffs? Yes, losing in seven games to the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
All-Stars: Paul Pierce
Other awards? Ricky Davis finished second in the Sixth Man of the Year Award voting.
Top five leading scorers: Pierce (21.6 ppg), Antoine Walker (16.3 ppg), Davis (16.0 ppg) Gary Payton (11.3) ppg, Raef LaFrentz (11.1 ppg)
Young bucks: 20-year-olds Al Jefferson (6.7 ppg) and Kendrick Perkins (2.5 pgg), were both on this team
Quick fact: This was the only year that Payton spent in Boston. Also a Hall of Famer, he was a nine-time All-Star and a nine-time All-NBA selection, though most of that work was done with the Seattle SuperSonics. He won the 1995-96 Defensive Player of the Year Award with Seattle.
Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers against the Orlando Magic during the second quarter at the Amway Center. Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports2005-06 Celtics
Team record: 33-49
Playoffs: No
All-Stars: Pierce
Other awards? Ryan Gomes finished ninth in the Rookie of the Year voting
Top five leading scorers: Pierce (26.8 ppg), Davis (19.7 ppg), Wally Szczerbiak (17.5 ppg), Mark Blount (12.4 ppg), Delonte West (11.8 ppg)
Quick fact: This marked the first of two consecutive losing seasons for the Celtics, which clearly prompted Boston to go hard in the offseason before 2007-08. The team eventually acquired Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett that offseason, which spurred the 2007-08 title.
About Rivers's induction
Garnett, Allen and Pierce will be together again on Saturday night, serving as the introducers for Rivers on his big night. The Hall of Fame induction can be seen on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on NBA TV.
