NBA veteran Austin Rivers is interested in signing with the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics. The Duke product, who is currently an unrestricted free agent, told Bill Simmons he reached out to Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and that they had a “great talk.”
Rivers said if the Heat trade for Damian Lillard, they will likely have several roster spots to fill, so he’s being patient and watching that situation closely. Lillard has requested a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers and only wants to get traded to Miami.
The 31-year-old Rivers played for the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. He appeared in 52 games and averaged 4.9 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 43.5% from the field, 35.0% from beyond the arc and 76.9% from the free-throw line. The Timberwolves lost to the Nuggets in the first round of the 2023 playoffs in five games.
Rivers has career averages of 8.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 707 games with the New Orleans Pelicans, Los Angeles Clippers, Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, New York Knicks, Nuggets and Timberwolves.
The Heat lost to the Nuggets in the 2023 NBA Finals in five games, while the Celtics fell to the Heat in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals. Rivers isn’t a star, but he’s a talented scorer and shooter who can help a team as a reserve. It will be interesting to see if the California native gets signed by a team.
Rivers has made over $57 million in his career. He’s the son of Doc Rivers, who won’t be coaching this season after getting fired by the Philadelphia 76ers.
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