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Austin Rivers Struggled, And Became A Better Man

Remember when Austin Rivers came to Duke? Even by basketball standards, he was really cocky. And why not?

He had a huge rep coming out of high school. His dad was an NBA coach. He hit the greatest shot in the history of the legendary Duke-UNC rivalry. He was the #10 pick in the 2012 draft.

And then things kind of changed.

He didn't thrive with the Pelicans and took a fair amount of abuse from fans and the media when he didn't light the league on fire.

Then he was traded to his dad’s team, the LA Clippers, and that didn’t really impress a lot of people, some of whom thought his father was bailing him out.