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Welcome to the Austin Rivers Monologues, coming to Broadway very soon.
On Wednesday, the Knicks’ new combo guard threw a 16-minute spiel – largely on why the league players should be dying to come and play in New York for the Knicks.
The 28-year-old said he was mystified as to why that hadn’t been the case in recent years. Doc Rivers’ talkative son has said he plans to change that negative vibe around the Knicks, saying he wants to make the franchise ‘great again’.
Rivers, 28, signed a 3-year, $ 10 million contract, but only the first year is guaranteed. He hopes to be part of the long term solution.
“We’re caught in a time when everyone loves to ride a wave,” Rivers told Zoom. “People want to go to places that are already on the rise and go to franchises that are already doing very well. And people have lost interest in going somewhere and doing something big again. I don’t understand why someone doesn’t want to play for a city like New York. I just don’t understand that. I do not understand that.
A 2012 NBA Draft lottery pick, Rivers had other options, including the Sixers where his father now coaches. But he stood out, playing for his father’s former best assistant in Boston, Tom Thibodeau.
“The opportunity was obvious,” Rivers said. “In a city that is considered a basketball mecca with its fans, why not try and be a part of something special? Everything is going in the right direction now – from hiring the coach to hiring the executive and assistant coaches and the choices they drafted. We are building to be part of something special. “
After being with the Rockets the past two seasons, Rivers wanted a change.
“It’s easy to go somewhere where everything’s already set up and they’ve made the playoffs four, five years in a row,” Rivers said. “I was part of these teams. These are great experiences. But I want to build on those experiences and lessons and help this team and this organization as much as possible. This time when people don’t want to come here, our job is to change that. We have to make it attractive. And we go. We have everything else. We have New York City and the best basketball fans. You play at Madison Square Garden every night. You have the lifestyle. You have it all. It’s our job as players – there wasn’t much management could do. So it is exciting. I wanted to be part of it. Why not?”
Rivers, who plays point and shooter, said he wasn’t sure where to start but wanted to be a leader after eventually being one of the oldest statesmen.
“My role will be to help the team win,” said Rivers. “If they throw me, all the better. Otherwise, I’ll still be there competing every night. Anyway, for me, it was never about starting the game. It was about ending the game. “
He’s already excited about Knicks’ first-round pick Obi Toppin, selected No.8.
“Obi Toppin is beyond a monster athlete, like beyond a monster athlete,” Rivers said. “He’s gonna be really good. ”
And maybe a selling point for free agents later on.
“If you’re a real hooper, if you really like playing on the bigger stage, that’s it,” he says.
Winning will also help recruiting.
“Are we saying we’re going to win a championship this year,” Rivers asked. “I don’t know. But we have to keep building in the right direction. We don’t have four or five All-Stars in this team, we don’t have superstars in this team. But we have talented young players. and you never know what can happen to this team… So we have to make it attractive. We have to compete, that’s the most important thing, that has to be our No. 1 advantage – we have to play harder than everyone else . ”
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