Austin Rivers getting Doc booted is the biggest father-son betrayal in a game since Tyrion shot Tywin on the toilet

Austin Rivers vs. Doc Rivers is the unexpected basketball beef I never knew I needed in my life until Wednesday night.

Let’s set the scene here: The Rockets and Clippers, both at 7-3 on the season, were duking it out to see who would be in second place in the West. Safe to say stakes were high as both teams tried to make an early-season statement, and Doc had been pretty heated all game. Late in the fourth quarter the coach became furious at the referees when he tried to challenge a call and lost a timeout as a result, because he took too much time challenging the play.

It’s unclear why, but at this point Austin decided to go into full troll mode. He started throwing up the “T” to goad the refs into charging his dad with a technical foul, which seemingly made Doc even more angry with what was happening. Suddenly Austin got his wish. His dad was tossed, and Austin wasn’t even remotely done — waving bye-bye to his pops, before holding his hand to his head like a phone yelling “Call me!”

After the game Doc laughed about the incident, saying that his son should have made sure he was tossed.

But, hoo boy, there’s so much to unpack here. While Doc was laughing it off and chalked it up to his son doing his job, Austin’s recount of the moment was devilish in its execution. Not only did Austin know his dad was about to pop, but he broke it down with scalpel-like precision.

“I knew it was coming. I’ve seen that look before — many times. Once he starts blinking his eyes fast ... that’s when I know he’s about to level up. I just started telling Tony [referee Tony Brothers] ‘get him,’ and they got him.”

It might be difficult to imagine working so hard to make sure your dad got kicked out of his office, but Austin and Doc have an interesting father-son relationship. In 2016, Austin told ESPN that he and his dad don’t really have a relationship outside of basketball, admitting that they never discuss their personal lives and saying “He and I don’t know each other like that,” adding it was largely because his dad was gone so much of his childhood traveling as a player and a coach. They’re fine with each other, but their interactions are strictly based on basketball — and ensuring the Clippers coach got tossed on Wednesday night was just a business transaction.

Regardless, I haven’t seen a father-son betrayal in a game like this since Tyrion Lannister shot Tywin on the toilet with a crossbow. Austin knows it might make things a little awkward with the holidays around the corner.