Source: Icon Sportswire / Getty
After a whirlwind week, the Milwaukee Bucks believe they’re back in position to win another championship with Giannis Antetokounmpo at the helm.
The team fired head coach Adrian Griffin on Tuesday, hoping to hire a more experienced coach merely hours later.
Bucks brass proved to move quickly and have since reportedly locked in Doc Rivers as their new head coach. Rivers took a break from coaching to become an ESPN NBA analyst but now returns to coaching, having most recently led the Philadelphia 76ers to three consecutive Eastern Conference Finals but failed to get them over the hump for title contention.
Rivers takes over a 30-13 Bucks team that’s suffered from questionable defense ratings despite having two seven-footers on the roster.
Griffin only lasted 43 games as a head coach newbie, but according to Bleacher Report, he lost the locker room, which is always a telltale sign that a pink slip is on the way. In a meeting with Antetokounmpo, Lillard, Middleton and Lopez, he told the starters they needed to sacrifice. He noted several plays where they’d drive to the basket instead of passing to open teammates.
Amid losing the in-season tournament and constant arguing in the locker rooms, the Bucks wanted to make a change fast.
The Rivers hire isn’t exactly a surprising move for the Bucks because, according to The Athletic, he served as an unofficial advisor to Griffin, aiding him in his first head coach job. The Athletic reports Rivers offered “Griffin advice and guidance on how to navigate his first NBA season with high expectations and a championship-caliber team.”
According to NBA Insider Charania Rivers, a coaching vet commanded a pretty penny to join the Bucks midseason while still having Griffin and Mike Budenholzer -who led the team to its second-ever championship- on the payroll.
“Doc Rivers is signing a contract through the 2026-27 season worth in the range of $40 million to be the Bucks’ head coach. Milwaukee is paying out former coaches Mike Budenholzer and Adrian Griffin, and now Rivers for next 3.5 years,” Charania tweeted.
Social media is questioning Rivers’ coaching prowess and if he was hilariously plotting on Griffin’s job the whole time.
See the reactions below.
