The Milwaukee Bucks’ decision to fire Adrian Griffin and go with Doc Rivers as his replacement may have been one of the reasons for their failed 2023-24 campaign. And due to more individuals in the coaching staff, Rivers has come up with the final decision on what to do for next season.
Right before Griffin was fired, the Bucks held the Eastern Conference’s second seed with the Boston Celtics on top. This marked a campaign with All-Star guard Damian Lillard running the point with Giannis Antetokounmpo beside him as the team boasted a 30-13 record under Griffin
During that period, the Bucks’ offense was second in the league while their defense dropped to 21st out of 30th teams. It should be remembered that Lillard was acquired in exchange of Jrue Holiday, a two way guard, and Grayson Allen was let go in free agency. With these two stars gone, Milwaukee often relied on a backcourt of Lillard and Malik Beasley to start games for them.
After Rivers came in, the defense vastly improved, especially with Patrick Beverley joining the lineup before the trade deadline passed. However, his record only resulted to 17-19 by the time the regular season ended. Add that performance to the Bucks’ early playoff exit, and Milwaukee will have to make some drastic changes during the offseason.
Milwaukee Bucks Shrinks Doc Rivers’ Coaching Staff After Disappointing 2023-24 season
After the Bucks were defeated by the Indiana Pacers, the focus has been on Rivers’ tenure as the team’s head coach. As a result, he has confirmed downsizing the coaching staff for the upcoming season in an article written by Eric Nehm for the Athletic:
“The toughest part is that this is a human business, and we have a lot of coaches who are here already, and so you evaluate everybody,” Rivers said during his introductory news conference about the possibility of trimming his staff . “You don’t come in with a set idea,” Nehm wrote.
The Bucks have recently let Sidney Dobner, DJ Bakker, and Josh Oppenheimer go. The were part of the 11 coaches Milwaukee had at some point during February. As of now, they only have seven heading into next season.
With a more lean and mean coaching staff under Rivers, the team hopes to perform better than it did recently. Add a fueled-up duo of Lillard and Antetokounmpo to the mix, and the Bucks may just put everyone on next in the upcoming campaign later this year.
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