Contrary to what some people believe, Austin Rivers of the Washington Wizards thinks that social media pushes NBA players to work and play harder.
Per Fred Katz of The Athletic, Rivers pointed out the fact that when a player has a bad game, there's a mighty good chance that he'll get embarrassed publicly.
Had a conversation about this with Austin Rivers, who thinks that the social media era makes everyone play harder because you'll get publicly embarrassed if you don't. And he thinks, with that in mind, bad teams play harder now than they used to. https://t.co/NA2BynMdgS
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) November 24, 2018
For the 26-year-old, this fact motivates the players and the whole team to do better. Without giving a concrete example, Rivers noted that the bad teams before are now playing better.
The Wizards talent's comments definitely need an in-depth study to be proven. After all, several NBA players choose to stay off social media since, for them, it serves as a distraction. They also see trade rumors which, if taken to heart, can affect their game negatively.
As for Rivers' performance this season, it's safe to say that it's not his best. Through 17 games coming off the bench, he's logged in just 6.6 points per game on 38.5 percent from the field, as well as 2.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists.
Though his statistics will definitely improve as he plays more games, his numbers now are a far cry from last season. Last year with the L.A. Clippers, he averaged 15.1 points per game on 42.4 percent shooting. Maybe Rivers needs to spend some more time on social media to boost his game up and help the Wizards.
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