At his exit interview last year, Danny Green mentioned that Doc Rivers believes he’ll become a coach.
The three-time champion does not want to follow his head coach’s footsteps at the moment, though.
“I’m saying, ‘Hell no, I’m not coaching.’ I’m not saying that I couldn’t do it,” the 34-year-old Green said. “I’m capable of doing it, but it’s just a lot. It’s draining. I see Doc’s hair — he’s losing his hair. Some guys' hair goes gray. I’d like to keep my hair, keep it dark. I don’t want the stress.”
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Rivers had the same intuition almost a decade ago about Willie Green, a member of his “Lob City” Clippers teams. His gut was right in that instance.
Green returned to Philadelphia on Tuesday night as a head coach for the first time since playing seven seasons for the Sixers. He remembered his first cheesesteak, naturally (Larry’s), as well as some of the people who played a role in his post-playing path. Green named current Temple head coach Aaron McKie, Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie, and Hall of Famer Mo Cheeks as influences from his Sixers days.
Like Rivers, Suns head coach Monty Williams and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr saw Green as someone who would one day share their jobs. Now that he does, Rivers has continued to offer insights.
“Doc has been great,” Green said before his shorthanded team started strong but ultimately fell to the Sixers. “I played for him with the Clippers and from that time on, he’s always predicted that I may have an opportunity to coach in this league. We stay on text messages. He’s been influential in my development as a coach. We’ll go out tonight, we’ll compete, and after, we’ll continue to talk about basketball like we normally do.”
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The Pelicans had a nightmarish beginning to the season, losing 14 of their first 16 games. Green has had to provide multiple Zion Williamson updates that boil down to, “Our superstar player is not healthy and ready to play like we hoped.” He's started rookie forward Herb Jones, the 35th pick and an early contender for one of the 2021 draft’s top steals, and tried to make progress both with player development and night-to-night results. New Orleans has gone 16-15 over its last 31 contests.
Rivers reached out “especially early in the season when it was tough for our team,” Green said. “We didn’t have a great start, and so Doc was one of the coaches that I leaned on and we would text each other back and forth.”
A former teammate of Green’s was at Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday watching with interest. During his two seasons alongside Green, Sixers general manager Elton Brand was the “Old School Chevy.”
“Elton was great,” Green said. “He took a lot of us young guys under his wing, kind of showed us the ropes, watched film with us. He’s everything that you wanted for a star, a leader and a role model at that time here in Philly. And I’m proud of him.”
The Sixers’ Green’s observation about the stress-filled nature of coaching sure seems accurate. The 40-year-old leader of the Pelicans has thus far rolled with whatever’s been thrown his way, though. And he appreciated his stop back in Philadelphia as a significant moment in his first head coaching season.
“Even before I walked in, the moment the plane lands in Philadelphia, there’s a connection,” he said. “This city, this organization is a part of what raised me in the NBA. I’m grateful to have started my career here. And walking through these doors, it just brings back so many memories and great times with my teammates, the staff here and the fans.”