Austin Rivers facts for kids
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Rivers with the Washington Wizards in 2018
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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| Born | August 1, 1992 Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
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| High school | Winter Park (Winter Park, Florida) | |||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | |||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | |||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||
| College | Duke (2011–2012) | |||||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 2012 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall | |||||||||||||
| Selected by the New Orleans Hornets | ||||||||||||||
| Pro career | 2012–2023 | |||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–2015 | New Orleans Hornets / Pelicans | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | Los Angeles Clippers | |||||||||||||
| 2018 | Washington Wizards | |||||||||||||
| 2018–2020 | Houston Rockets | |||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | New York Knicks | |||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Denver Nuggets | |||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Minnesota Timberwolves | |||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
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| Career NBA statistics | ||||||||||||||
| Points | 5,996 (8.5 ppg) | |||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 1,442 (2.0 rpg) | |||||||||||||
| Assists | 1,513 (2.1 apg) | |||||||||||||
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Medals
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Austin James Rivers (born August 1, 1992) is an American former professional basketball player. He is now a sports analyst for ESPN. Austin played for 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
In the 2012 NBA draft, the New Orleans Hornets (now called the Pelicans) chose Austin as the 10th overall pick. He played for them for three seasons. Later, he joined the Los Angeles Clippers. After three years with the Clippers, he was traded to the Washington Wizards in June 2018. In December of the same year, he moved to the Houston Rockets. Austin also played for the New York Knicks, Denver Nuggets, and the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Austin led Winter Park High School to win two Florida 6A state championships in a row, in 2010 and 2011. He also played for Team USA in the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit. He was a McDonald's All-American player. Many experts thought he was one of the best high school basketball players in 2011. In October 2010, Austin decided to play college basketball for Duke University.
On January 16, 2015, Austin made history. He became the first player in the NBA to play for his father, Doc Rivers. His dad was the head coach of the Clippers at that time.
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High School Basketball Success
In 2010, Austin Rivers helped Winter Park High School win its first state title. They beat Dr. Phillips High School 76–57 in the 6A state championship. Austin scored 23 points in that important game.
In June 2010, Austin was part of the team that won a gold medal. This was at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship. He set a new record for Team USA in an U18 event. He scored 35 points against Canada. On August 5, 2010, Austin was named co-MVP at the Boost Mobile Elite 24 game. He had 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.
On September 30, 2010, Austin decided to go to Duke University. This was a big deal because he was a top recruit. He officially signed with Duke on November 16, 2010.
On March 5, 2011, Austin led Winter Park to another state championship. They won 52–44 against Dr. Phillips High School. He scored 25 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and made 4 steals. Austin was named the 2011 Naismith Prep Player of the Year on March 10, 2011. He was also an All-American and played for Team USA.
College Career at Duke
As a freshman, Austin played in exhibition games for Duke in China and Dubai. This was during an international tour in August 2011. In the first game against the China men's national basketball team, Austin scored 18 points. Duke won the game 77–64. In the second game, he scored 12 points in a 78–66 victory. He made several exciting dunks. In the final game in Beijing, Austin added 11 points as Duke beat the Chinese team 93–78. He also scored 16 points against the Dubai national team.
On February 8, 2012, Austin made a game-winning three-point shot. It happened as time ran out against the University of North Carolina. Duke came back from being down 82–72 with two minutes left. They won 85–84. This win ended North Carolina's 31-game winning streak at the Dean Smith Center.
Austin's college career ended on March 16, 2012. Duke lost to Lehigh University in the NCAA tournament. Austin shot 5-of-14 from the field in 34 minutes. Lehigh led for most of the game and earned their first NCAA Tournament victory.
On March 26, 2012, Austin decided to enter the NBA draft. This meant he would not play his last three years of college basketball.
Professional Basketball Journey
New Orleans Hornets / Pelicans (2012–2015)
The New Orleans Hornets picked Austin Rivers 10th overall in the 2012 NBA draft. Austin chose to wear jersey number 25, just like his father did in the NBA. He said he wanted to be like his dad, "only better." Anthony Davis, the first overall pick, also joined the Hornets as a rookie. On July 24, 2012, Austin signed his first NBA contract. A few days later, he had surgery on his right ankle.
On October 31, 2012, Austin played his first NBA game. It was the Hornets' season opener against the San Antonio Spurs. He scored 7 points in 24 minutes as a starter. On December 14, he scored a career-high 27 points. On March 6, 2013, he broke his hand and missed the rest of the season. In his first season, he averaged 6.2 points per game. In April 2013, the Hornets changed their name to the Pelicans.
The Pelicans extended Austin's contract through the 2014–15 season. On April 12, 2014, Austin had season highs of 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Los Angeles Clippers (2015–2018)
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On January 12, 2015, Austin was traded to the Boston Celtics. Three days later, he joined his father, Doc Rivers, on the Los Angeles Clippers. On January 16, Austin played his first game for the Clippers. He became the first son to play for his father in an NBA game. On February 21, Austin scored a career-high 28 points. On May 8, he scored a playoff career-high 25 points.
On July 13, 2015, Austin signed a new contract with the Clippers. On February 6, 2016, he was out for four to six weeks with a broken left hand. On March 31, he scored a new career-high of 32 points. On April 29, Austin had 21 points and eight assists in a playoff game. The Clippers were eliminated from the playoffs in that game. Austin needed 11 stitches above his left eye after a collision.
On July 8, 2016, Austin signed with the Clippers again. On December 14, 2016, he scored a season-high 25 points. On January 4, 2017, he set a new season high with 28 points. He averaged career highs of 12.0 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.8 assists during the 2016–17 season. He missed some games due to a hamstring injury.
On December 3, 2017, Austin scored a season-high 30 points. On December 22, 2017, he scored 30 of his career-high 36 points in the second half. The next night, he set a new career high with 38 points. Austin missed 18 games between late December and early February because of a heel bruise.
Washington Wizards (2018)
On June 26, 2018, Austin was traded to the Washington Wizards. On December 17, 2018, he was traded again to the Phoenix Suns. The Suns then let him go the next day.
Houston Rockets (2018–2020)
On December 24, 2018, Austin signed with the Houston Rockets. On January 5, 2019, he scored a season-high 21 points. On April 7, the Rockets set a new NBA record for most three-pointers in a game. Austin made the 27th three-pointer in their win against the Phoenix Suns. He played in 47 games for the Rockets, averaging 8.7 points. The Rockets won 72% of their games after he joined. On August 9, 2020, Austin scored a career-high 41 points off the bench. This happened in the 2020 NBA Bubble in Orlando.
New York Knicks (2020–2021)
On November 27, 2020, Austin joined the New York Knicks. On March 25, 2021, he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was then released three days later.
Denver Nuggets (2021–2022)
On April 20, 2021, the Denver Nuggets signed Austin to a 10-day contract. This happened after Jamal Murray had a season-ending injury. Ten days later, he signed with the Nuggets for the rest of the season.
On September 1, 2021, Austin signed with the Nuggets again.
Minnesota Timberwolves (2022–2023)
On July 14, 2022, Austin signed a one-year contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. On February 4, 2023, Austin was suspended by the NBA for three games. This was due to his part in an altercation during a game.
Life After Playing: Sports Analyst
On October 23, 2023, it was announced that Austin Rivers was hired by ESPN. He now works as an NBA analyst.
Austin Rivers has also worked as a game analyst for some college basketball games on NBC Sports since 2025.
Family Life
Austin Rivers was born in Santa Monica, California. His father is Doc Rivers, a former player and current head coach for the Milwaukee Bucks. His mother is Kristen Rivers.
Austin's older brother, Jeremiah Rivers, played basketball for Georgetown and Indiana. His older sister, Callie, played volleyball for the University of Florida. She is married to Seth Curry, who was Austin's teammate at Duke. His younger brother, Spencer, played basketball for UC Irvine.
Austin was named after former Cleveland Cavaliers guard Austin Carr. His middle name, James, honors his great-uncle Jim Brewer.
Austin has three children. His first son was born in 2018. He has two more children, a son born in March 2021 and a daughter born in June 2024.
See also
In Spanish: Austin Rivers para niños
