Doc Rivers Eyeing Former Head Coach For His Staff

By Kevin McCormick, Sports Talk Philly Editor

Since being hired by the Sixers, Doc Rivers has been busying trying to build a top-level coaching staff to join him. Rivers had his eye on Alvin Gentry, but he would eventually accept an offer to join the Kings' staff. Now Rivers has his eye on another former head coach to join the coaching staff in Philadelphia.

Frank Isola has reported that Doc Rivers has his eyes on Dave Joerger to become an assistant coach. Joerger has six years of head coaching experience, making stops in Memphis and Sacramento.

Dave Joerger, who interviewed for the Indiana Pacers head coaching job, is under consideration to join Doc Rivers staff in Philadelphia, according to a league source.

— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) October 14, 2020

Although Joerger is still a name on head coaching radars, adding him to the staff in Philadelphia could be a huge boost. His experience as a head coach in Memphis could help the Sixers fix one of their key problems.

During his time coaching the "grit and grind" Grizzlies, Joerger established a solid system with two big men sharing the floor. As the Sixers continue to figure out how to make Joel Embiid and Al Horford co-exist, adding a guy like Joerger could help find that solution.

He could also be a guy that could help Joel Embiid take the next step in his game. When Marc Gasol was in Memphis, he played at an elite level in Joerger's system. Bringing in a coach with experience utilizing a multi-skill center would be extremely beneficial to the growth of Joel Embiid's game.

During his introductory press conference in Philadelphia, one thing Doc Rivers mentioned was increasing the pace at which the Sixers play. This is another area that Joerger could help as he had his Kings teams playing at one of the fastest paces in the league during that time.

Bringing in as many fresh faces as possible will only benefit the Sixers. Having another coach like Joerger there to help the Sixers make the necessary changes would only be beneficial as they look to bounce back this upcoming season.