Austin Rivers

At 31 years old, Austin Rivers has this physical status:

Austin James Rivers (born August 1, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Rivers led Winter Park High School to back-to-back Florida 6A state championships in 2010 and 2011.

He also played in the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit for the Team USA, and was a McDonald's All-American. He was one of the top rated high school basketball players in the class of 2011, being rated as high as No. 1 by Rivals.com.

On September 30, 2010, Rivers committed to Duke University.

Rivers gained national recognition after making a game winning 3-pointer against Duke rival North Carolina in 2012.

He was drafted with the 10th pick in the NBA draft by the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans), playing three seasons there before being traded to the Clippers.

After three years with the Clippers, he was traded to the Wizards in June 2018.

In December 2018, he joined the Rockets. On January 16, 2015, Rivers became the first player in NBA history to play for his father, coach Doc Rivers of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Personal life

Rivers was born in Santa Monica, California, the son of (current) Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers and Kristen Rivers (née Campion). Doc Rivers was a former player who had joined the Los Angeles Clippers the summer of his son’s birth. His older brother, Jeremiah, played basketball for Georgetown and Indiana and later joined the Maine Red Claws, while his older sister Callie played volleyball for the University of Florida and is married to his former Duke teammate Seth Curry. His younger brother, Spencer, was a guard who played for UC Irvine from 2014-19.

He was named Austin after former Cleveland Cavaliers guard Austin Carr, while his middle name, James, is in honor of his great-uncle Jim Brewer.

His first child with Brittany Hotard was born in 2018. Rivers' second child, a son with Audreyana Michelle, was born in March 2021.

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High school career

Rivers led Winter Park High School to their first state championship in 2010 after defeating Dr. Phillips High School in the 6A state championship. In the game, the Rivers had 23 points. Rivers was a member of the FIBA Americas U18 Championship gold medalist team in June 2010, where he set a record of 35 points against Canada. Rivers won their fifth annual Boost Mobile Elite 24 game on August 5, 2010, where he was named co-MVP after scoring 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Rivers pledged to Duke University on September 30, 2010. Given his position as the Class of 2011's best recruit, ESPN and other sports broadcasts were heavily covered. On November 16, 2010, he officially joined the service.

Rivers led Winter Park to a 52-44 victory over Dr. Phillips High School, in which he had 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 steals. On March 10, 2011, Rivers was named the 2011 Naismith Prep Player of the Year. He was also an All-American and All-State winner, and he competed in the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit for Team USA.

College career

During an international tour in August 2011, Rivers participated in Duke's exhibition games in China and Dubai as a freshman. Rivers scored 18 points on 8–19 shootings in China's first game against the China national basketball team, leading Duke to a 77–64 victory. Rivers won by 12 points in a 78–66 victory, also against the Chinese national team, with several dunks during the first half. As Duke defeated the Chinese, 93–78, the Rivers chipped in 11 points in Beijing's last game played in Beijing. He scored 16 points, 10 in the second quarter, and ten in the second quarter on a series of spectacular drives, leading to his team's 86–66 victory over the Dubai national team.

Duke defeated the University of North Carolina 85–84 in an 85–84 victory over time expired on February 8, 2012, with his three-point basket as time expired. At the Dean Smith Center, North Carolina snapped their 31-game winning streak.

Rivers' college career came to an end on March 16, 2012, when Duke lost to Lehigh University. When playing 34 minutes, the Rivers shot 5-14 from the field. Lehigh led the majority of the game, winning their first NCAA Tournament victory.

Rivers declared for the NBA draft on March 26, 2012, foregoing his final three years of college eligibility.

Professional career

Rivers was selected by the New Orleans Hornets with the tenth overall pick of the 2012 NBA draft. The Rivers opted for the #25 jersey, the same number his father wore while he was in the NBA. "I want to be like my dad, but only better." Rivers wrote the night before. Anthony Davis, the first overall pick of the draft, was joining him as a rookie on the Hornets. Rivers' rookie scale deal with the Hornets was signed on July 24, 2012. Rivers returned from surgery to repair bone spurs in his right ankle three days later.

Rivers made his NBA debut in the Hornets' season opener against the San Antonio Spurs on October 31, 2012. In a 99-95 loss, he scored 7 points on 1-of-9 shooting in 24 minutes as a starter. In a 113-102 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 14, he scored a career-high 27 points. He broke his hand early in 2013 and required surgery that required him to miss the remainder of the season. He shot 39 percent from the field and 33% from three-point range for his rookie season. The Hornets changed their name to the Pelicans in April 2013.

The Pelicans used a third-year team option on Rivers' rookie scale contract, extending the deal through the 2014-2015 season. In the Pelicans' 111-104 loss to the Houston Rockets on April 12, 2014, the Rivers reached season-highs in points and rebounds, 20 and 10.

The Pelicans decided against exercising their fourth-year option on Rivers' rookie scale deal on October 24, 2014, extending the deal beyond the 2015-2016 season. In a 114–88 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on December 20, 2014, he scored a season-high 21 points.

Rivers was traded to the Boston Celtics in a three-team trade involving the Pelicans and the Memphis Grizzlies on January 12, 2015. After being traded in a three-team trade involving the Celtics and the Phoenix Suns, three days later, he joined his father on the Los Angeles Clippers. Rivers made his NBA debut on January 16, becoming the first son to play for his father in an NBA game. Rivers defeated the Sacramento Kings 129-98 for a season-high 28 points on February 21, the first time the rivers had scored a career-high 28 points. In the Clippers' 124–99 win, he earned them a 2–1 advantage over the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference semi-finals on May 8.

Rivers re-signed with the Clippers on July 13, 2015. With a fractured left hand, he was barred from six weeks for four to six weeks. In a 119-117 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 31, he scored a career-high 32 points. In Game 6 of the Portland Trail Blazers' first-round playoff series, the Rivers scored 21 points and eight assists against the Portland Trail Blazers on April 29, 2009. The Clippers were also barred from the playoffs after a 106–103 loss. Rivers needed 11 stitches above his left eye from a collision in the first quarter to play in the game.

Rivers re-signed with the Clippers on July 8, 2016. In a 113-108 victory over the Orlando Magic, he scored a season-high 25 points on 7-of-10 from three-point range and 9-of-12 from the field on December 14, 2016. In a 115-106 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on January 4, 2017, he set a new season record with 28 points. During the 2016-17 regular season, he averaged 12.0 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.8 assists, but the Rivers skipped the last six games of the regular season and the first four games of the playoffs before returning to Game 5 of the Clippers' first-round playoff series against the Utah Jazz.

In a 112-106 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 3, 2017, the Rivers scored a season-high 30 points. In the second half of the Clippers' 128-118 victory over the Houston Rockets on December 22, 2017, he scored 30 of his career-high 36 points. In a 115–112 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, he set a new career record of 38 points. With a heel bruise, the Rivers skipped 18 games between late December and early February.

Rivers were traded to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Marcin Gortat on June 26, 2018. Rivers was traded from Kelly Oubre Jr. to the Phoenix Suns for Trevor Ariza on December 17, 2018. By the Suns the following day, the rivers had been waived.

The Rivers signed the Houston Rockets on December 24, 2018. In a 110-101 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on January 5, 2019, he scored a season-high 21 points. Rivers won by 149–113 against the Phoenix Suns on April 7, the 27th three-pointer of the game with 1:09 remaining on the clock in the fourth quarter, defeating the Rockets' previous record of most made threes by one team in a game (26). He appeared in 47 games, averaged 8.7 points, 2.3 assists, and 1.9 rebounds in 28.6 minutes per game. Since signing Rivers, the Rockets won 72% of their games. From Dec. 31 to January 25, he played in 13 straight games as a Rocket, averaging 11.6 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.7 rebounds in 38.1 minutes per game. When Rivers scored in double-figures and 9-1 when he had at least four assists, Houston was 15-5. With the Rockets, he had almost as many steals (29) as turnovers (32) compared to turnovers (32). Rivers scored a career-high 41 points off the bench on August 9, 2020, and the Rockets cruised to a 129-112 victory over the Sacramento Kings in the Orlando bubble. On a night when the Rockets lost their second straight game without Russell Westbrook, who suffered with a bruised right quadriceps, the Rivers won by six points.

The New York Knicks acquired Rivers in a sign-and-trade agreement on November 27, 2020. Rivers were traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 25, 2021, as part of a three-team trade, and they were waived three days later.

Following Jamal Murray's season-end injury, the Denver Nuggets agreed to a 10-day deal on April 20, 2021. He was signed for the remainder of the season ten days later.

Rivers re-signed with the Nuggets on September 1, 2021.

Rivers' one-year deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves began on July 14, 2022.

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