Doc Rivers on Kobe's retirement: 'I’m really happy about it'

Tearful goodbyes will be uttered when Kobe Bryant finally rides off into the sunset, but Doc Rivers will be the last to shed tears.

Rivers, who coaches the crosstown rival Los Angeles Clippers, is thrilled that the five-time champion is finally on his way out.

"I’m really happy about it," Rivers said. " ... I’ll be very happy when Kobe retires. He’s inflicted pain on me personally and so I’m looking forward to it. Everybody else is lying. They’re saying, like, they want Kobe to keep playing and that’s not true. The guy, he’s inflicted pain on all of us."

Rivers' tongue-in-cheek comments stem from his many battles with Bryant when he coached the Boston Celtics. Rivers ran into Bryant in the 2008 and 2010 NBA Finals and the two split one title each.

"Something happened in 2010, I don’t remember what happened there," Rivers said cheekily.

But putting jokes aside, Rivers has all the respect in the world for the Black Mamba. Having coached against Bryant for nearly two decades, Rivers appreciates how hard Bryant competed.

"I just remember how hard he was every night. I mean, he was just tough, physically. I thought both of those series, the mental part of Kobe is what stood out," Rivers said.

“We knew the talent. But I don’t think you really know a player until you coach him or coach against him in the playoffs, and it told me a lot."