Will Sixers coach Doc Rivers continue to go deep into his bench for rest of Hawks’ series?

Tom Moore, Bucks County Courier Times Published 2:30 p.m. ET June 10, 2021 | Updated 3:06 p.m. ET June 10, 2021

New York Knicks’ Julius Randle was surprised by his 4 year-old-son that was awarded “Most Improved Player.” USA TODAY

Some of Doc Rivers’ personnel decisions in Game 2 seemed a bit surprising, given the circumstances.

For instance, why did Rivers put Furkan Korkmaz back into Tuesday’s playoff contest against the Atlanta Hawks late in the third quarter of a three-point contest the 76ers had to win to even the series? Korkmaz had missed all three of his first-half shots, two of which failed to hit the rim, and is not known for his defense.

And why, two minutes earlier, had Rivers called upon his 11th player of the night, Shake Milton? Milton checked in for the first time in what was a one-point game.

Sixers head coach Doc Rivers gets his point across to Furkan Korkmaz during the first-round playoff series against the Wizards.

 (Photo: Nick Wass, AP)

NBA coaches typically shorten their rotations to eight or nine and rely more heavily on their starters when trailing a best-of-seven playoff series like the Sixers were, but Rivers decided to go 11-deep again.

Heading into the postseason, Rivers insisted he wasn’t afraid to play 10 or 11 in important games and he’s proving it.

“I don’t think a lot of coaches shorten (the rotation) unless they have a team that they don’t trust,” said Rivers following Thursday’s practice. “There are coaches that stay with their deeper rotations (such as the Phoenix Suns). They went deep (in Game 2 Wednesday) and they’ve done it every night because they have enough guys where they feel comfortable playing. I’ve had that before and I’ve also had the 8-, 7-(man) rotations, as well. I really think that’s more of it.”

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While Korkmaz didn’t end up being a factor in Game 2, Milton turned out to be a difference-maker with 14 points in 14 minutes, hitting 4 of 5 3-pointers in a 118-102 victory at the Wells Fargo Center after accumulating a total of 17 points on 4-for-19 shooting (1 of 5 on 3s) in the Sixers’ first six playoff games.

It’ll be interesting to see if Rivers continues to coach same way with his personnel as the series shifts to Atlanta for Games 3 (Friday night, 7:30 on ESPN) and 4 (Monday evening, 7:30 on TNT) before returning to South Philadelphia for Game 5 (Wednesday night, time TBA).

He said he doesn’t plan on changing the approach to his rotation, which is similar to what he did in the regular season, on the road in the postseason.

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“It’s the circumstances (of the game that determine who gets out on the floor, not the location) and it really comes down to how you’re playing and how you’re functioning with the group,” Rivers said.

Had Rivers not gone with Milton, who had been struggling in the playoffs and only played 38 seconds in Game 1, who knows what would have happened Tuesday?

Milton’s essential Game 2 contributions could catapult him back into Rivers’ regular rotation, which would mean a potential decrease in minutes for Korkmaz and/or rookie Tyrese Maxey.

“We have a plethora of guards who can play, (but) they all can’t play every night,” Rivers said. “So we want to do is keep them in rhythm. (It’s) the push/pull principle – meaning if you play well, you keep playing. If not, there’s a guy pushing you, which will pull you along as well.”

In other words, the reserves’ difficulties in the first two games resulted in Rivers giving Milton a shot in the second half each time.

It was up to Milton to make the most of his opportunity.

“I just heard over and over from my teammates to stay ready and I just tried to be prepared,” said Milton, which is what Rivers wants. “Your job is to be ready when your name is called.”

Rivers lit into the second group – “ripped our (butt),” according to veteran guard George Hill – after the backups failed to score in the first half Tuesday. The reserves were better at both ends of the court after intermission.

“He’s been a deep-rotation guy throughout the season,” Hill said. “I think he’s more of a coach that wants to keep everything the same. We’ve been good all year playing a lot of guys and he thinks we can still continue to be good playing a lot of guys. I think we have a deep team and that’s the best thing for us.”

Rivers’ critics claimed he coached Game 1 vs. the Hawks like it was a regular-season game – using veteran Danny Green as the primary defender (49 of 71 Atlanta possessions) on speedy Hawks guard Trae Young rather than superior on-the-ball guys Ben Simmons and Matisse Thybulle, in addition to playing all five reserves together and using a total of six players off the bench.

Rivers adjusted the first two areas during the Game 2 win by having Simmons (31 of 62 possessions) and Thybulle (29 possessions) as the primary defenders on Young and not using more than four backups at the same time, but he again went with six bench players.

Sixers coach Doc Rivers, center, reacts during a Game 4 playoff loss to the Wizards.

 (Photo: Nick Wass, AP)

Simmons and Thybulle will undoubtedly remain in those roles going forward, barring foul trouble or other unforeseen developments. Green, who is better defending off the ball, should keep matching up with Atlanta 3-point shooter Bogdan Bogdanovic.

As for Rivers’ rotation, expect him to keep going 10 or 11 deep, especially if he doesn’t get the production he’s looking for from his first few reserves. He’s already shown he’s willing to go well down the bench in his quest.

Tom Moore: tmoore@couriertimes.com; @TomMoorePhilly