Playing the Celtics may not affect Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce that much anymore, but going up against former Boston coach Doc Rivers will make any game seem far from a regular game.
Following the Nets’ win over Boston on Tuesday, Garnett said it wasn’t as “emotional” because Rivers wasn’t there.
On Thursday at Barclays Center, Rivers will be standing on the sidelines as the Clippers’ new coach, going up against the two players who most helped him bring Boston its long-awaited NBA championship in 2008.
Garnett and Pierce, who still communicate with Rivers often, both sat out of the Nov. 16 game in Los Angeles with injuries.
Pierce and Garnett were not available to the media following Wednesday’s practice, but coach Jason Kidd said he understood the bond that still exists between the players and their former coach.
“That’s the guy they won a championship with, they have a lot of respect for,” said Kidd. “He’s a very good coach. There’ll probably be some emotion. Probably being in a different uniform takes a little bit away, but still the tie of being able to win that championship and play for a good coach like that.”
Joe Johnson said Pierce and Garnett would be eager to see Rivers, that it would be a “great moment for those guys to reunite and connect.”
It is a feeling Johnson is familiar with, having gone against former coaches who Johnson felt helped him achieve his status among the league’s elite.
“Nah, it’s not strange. It’s like an old friend that you haven’t seen in a while and you look forward to seeing him, just dapping him up,” Johnson said. “Because for a lot of guys, especially me, my career basically started with [Mike] D’Antoni [in Phoenix] and then when I got to Atlanta with Mike Woodson, you know, then that’s when I turned into an All-Star. Those two guys I’ll never forget them. They’ll always be great friends of mine. I can kind of understand what KG and Paul are going to face [Thursday] when they see Doc.”
After Wednesday’s practice, Kidd said he still had not spoken with Pierce about coming off the bench for a second straight game — which would mark only the fifth time in his career — but the coach was open to the idea, having been impressed with the veteran’s leadership with the second unit Tuesday night.
Before that game, Pierce had missed the previous four games with a broken bone in his right hand, forcing him to wear a protective glove on his shooting hand.
“For him, going with the glove, getting used to the glove and also being out and having him come off the bench, I thought he did a great job with the second group,” said Kidd. “Well, it’s coming off an injury so we’re not saying this is permanent. We’re going to take it day-by-day. That’s the only way we can do it.”
Kidd had no updates on Andrei Kirilenko (back) and Jason Terry (knee).