Letters: What’s up, Doc? Clippers get rid of Rivers

Though Doc Rivers may have been successful in having many banners at Staples covered up, he could never close the deal on hanging one up for his own team. Karma can be a cruel beast.

Bud Chapman
Northridge

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Dan Woike and Broderick Turner refer to the firing of Doc Rivers as another Clippers surprise? The surprise was how long it took. Rivers may be a nice guy, everything points to that, and he may be a coach players like and respect, everything points to that, but he’s not a great bench/game coach and his playoff record points to that. His teams blow 3-1 playoff game leads like kids blow out birthday candles. He’s done it with multiple teams.

The Clippers need a Mike Malone-type coach. He inspires.

Bruce N. Miller
Playa del Rey

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As a longtime Clippers season-ticket holder I don’t like the Doc firing. It’s ungrateful. It’s shortsighted. It’s a step backward.

He was the heart of the franchise, holding it together twice, rebuilding it once, twice? Attracting star and role players, making us proud he was ours in a national crisis.

Why, because his players couldn’t shoot under pressure as great as the Red Sox and Cubs players endured for decades?

Joe Sterbinsky
North Hills

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Cancel my season tickets after 29 years! Simply put, Doc Rivers’ resurrection of the Clippers over the past seven years has been an inspiration to all loyal Clippers fans. This year’s team, in spite of all the tumult, was certainly one of the most exciting. More importantly, his leadership and his voice during the season of social unrest has been an inspiration to many.
Thanks for the ride Doc, it was fun while it lasted. I’m done... Go Lakers!

David Brubaker
Palm Desert

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The heat on the Clippers’ demise this season has fallen on Doc Rivers. Paul George. Kawhi Leonard. Chuck the Condor.
Steve Ballmer has made his decisions to go into the wild beyond. Let’s hope they aren’t as bad as the ones he made at Microsoft. In 12 years there, the first day he made shareholders and himself money was the day he resigned. Microsoft’s value increased by $ 1billion the day after from grateful investors.

Now he’s traded all the Clippers future assets for Paul George and fired Doc Rivers. Deja vu?

Bob Goldstone
Corona del Mar

Wait for it

When will The Times put a muzzle on Bill Plaschke and his incessant desire to predict the outcome of sporting events that are far from decided? His call after Wednesday night’s Lakers win in the first game of a seven-game NBA Finals is a near death call. His knowledge of basketball, baseball and football are suspect at best. He repeatedly becomes a homer for a Los Angeles team until he is wrong and then he is the first one to call them out when they don’t win.

This is just bad journalism. You don’t write stories that can have an alternate ending particularly when you don’t bother to say this is your opinion. Plaschke only knows how to say what he says is so and the outcome will be as he predicts. He has been wrong so many times it is now fair to describe his columns as the “Plaschke Curse.”

Jay Slater
Los Angeles

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The two biggest stars in L.A. Lakers and Dodgers history are Magic Johnson and Sandy Koufax, both of whom wore uniform No. 32. In 1988 both teams won championships.

Asterisk or not, here is hoping that destiny, LeBron and Kershaw carry both teams to titles again, 32 years later.

Ken Feldman
Tarzana

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Mookie Betts (postseason .227 average) fits right in with some of the Dodgers’ postseason futility: Bellinger .178 and Kershaw 4.43 ERA. With the shortened season, no fans and no cheating, I see the Dodgers rising to the occasion and winning their first World Series title since 1988.

Vaughn Hardenberg
Westwood

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Since purchasing the team in 2003 and inheriting Bill Stoneman as general manager, Arte Moreno has hired and fired three more, none lasting longer than five seasons. Moreno, not the GMs, signed high-priced free-agent flops Josh Hamilton, Albert Pujols and Gary Matthews Jr. Moreno was the one who made the disastrous Vernon Wells trade debacle and rejected the highway robbery deal with the Dodgers of Luis Rengifo for Ross Stripling and Joc Pederson.

Tony Reagins, Jerry Dipoto and Billy Eppler are not the reason the Angels are an irrelevant franchise, despite having the best player in the game. That would be an owner who made headlines for reducing beer prices but also expectations and any chance his team will ever have of finding a long-term relationship with any GM worth having.

Erik Schuman
Fountain Valley

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With the Astros playing in the AL Division Series starting Monday at Chavez Ravine, how about letting 5,000 socially distanced Dodgers fans in each game to give the Astros the reception they so richly deserve?

Ken Blake
Brea

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Poor Clayton Kershaw can’t win. He’s gone from “What have you done for us lately?” to “What are you going to do for us next?”

Glenda Laguna
Highland

Watch the clock

I like Sean McVay. He is an inspirational guy, and has a passion for what he does. But I have watched him over and over squander timeouts during the most meaningless parts of a game. This poor clock management does not help a good team that is trying to be great. If you do not believe me, look at Andy Reid or Bill Belichick. Have you noticed they always seem to have their three timeouts at the end of the game?

Ed Sandell
Somis, Calif.

Good news

Wait! The Giants and the Celtics were both eliminated on the same day?

I guess that means there’s been at least one good day in 2020.

Michael Lee Manous
Upland

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Of all the terrible, insane and, frankly, soul-wrenching days we have been through in the past six-and-a-half months, Wednesday’s eight MLB playoff games and the Lakers’ blowout Final was like an ice-cold Coke on the hottest day of the summer.

Marcelo Barreiro
Manhattan Beach

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