Doc (left) and Austin Rivers
January 16, 2015: The Los Angeles Clippers host the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles. The Clippers were coached by Glenn "Doc" Rivers. The team had just acquired his son, Austin Rivers, as part of a 3-way trade between the New Orleans Pelicans, from whom Austin had played since 2012, and the Boston Celtics.
This was Austin's 1st game for the Clips, and thus his 1st game being coached by his father. There had been fathers and sons both playing in the NBA before, and there had even been fathers and sons coaching in the NBA before. But this was the 1st game in which a father coached his son.
It didn't go so well, for father or son. The Cavs won, 126-121. Kyrie Irving scored 37 points for the Cavs, while LeBron James scored 32. Austin Rivers played 11 minutes and 32 seconds, took 6 shots, 2 of them from 3-point range, and missed them all. He grabbed no rebounds. He had no assists. He did commit a turnover, and get charged with a personal foul. It was immediately mocked as one of the worst-played games in NBA history.
Things got better for Austin, and he remained with the Clippers through 2018. Doc remained their head coach until 2020.
Butch Van Breda Kolff was the 1st father to coach against his son in the NBA, when he coached the New Orleans Jazz while his son Jan played for the New York Nets on November 9, 1976. The Jazz won the game, 110-99.
UPDATE: Austin Rivers last played in 2023. Like Doc, he has gone into broadcasting. Doc continues as an NBA coach.
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January 16, 2015 was a Friday. There were 12 other games in the NBA:
* The Brooklyn Nets beat the Washington Wizards, 102-80 at the Verizon Center (now the Capital One Arena) in Washington.
* The Chicago Bulls beat the Boston Celtics, 119-103 at the TD Garden in Boston.
* The Philadelphia 76ers beat the New Orleans Pelicans, 96-81 at the Wells Fargo Center (now the Xfinity Mobile Arena) in Philadelphia.
* The Memphis Grizzlies beat the Orlando Magic, 106-96 at the Amway Center in Orlando.
* The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Golden State Warriors, 127-115 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena (now the Paycom Center) in Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant scored 36 points. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 32.
* The Dallas Mavericks beat the Denver Nuggets, 97-89 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 110-96 at the AT&T Center (now the Frost Bank Arena) in San Antonio.
* The Atlanta Hawks beat the Toronto Raptors, 110-89 at the Air Canada Centre (now the Scotiabank Arena) in Toronto.
* The Detroit Pistons beat the Indiana Pacers, 98-96 at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse (now the Gainbridge Fieldhouse) in Indianapolis. Brandon Jennings scored 37 points.
* The Phoenix Suns beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 110-99 at the US Airways Center (now the Mortgage Matchup Center) in Phoenix.
* The Utah Jazz beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 94-85 at the Delta Center (then the EnergySolutions Arena) in Salt Lake City, Utah.
* And the Miami Heat beat the Sacramento Kings, 95-83 at the Sleep Train Arena (formerly the ARCO Arena) in Sacramento.
Baseball was out of season. The NFL was between Playoff rounds. There were 6 games in the NHL:
* The New York Rangers beat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 2-1 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus.
* The New York Islanders beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 6-3 at the UBS Arena.
* The New Jersey Devils lost to the Anaheim Ducks, 5-1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim.
* The Vancouver Canucks beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 3-0 at the PNC Arena (now the Lenovo Center) in Raleigh.
* The Nashville Predators beat the Washington Capitals, 4-3 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
* And the Winnipeg Jets beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-2 at the United Center in Chicago.
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