The Milwaukee Bucks lost all five of their Summer League games this year. To a certain extent, this is an undeniably discouraging development for Bucks fans after watching their young players fail to secure a win in five tries.
One of the few bright spots for the squad, however, is the play of incoming second-year swingman Chris Livingston, who was arguably Milwaukee’s best player throughout the NBA Summer League.
Milwaukee Bucks News: Chris Livingston Speaks Out on Relationship With Doc Rivers
Livingston logged a team-high 13 points (tied with TyTy Washington), eight rebounds, and a steal during Milwaukee’s 91-79 loss to the Washington Wizards on Saturday. This was another noteworthy performance by Livingston, who is expected to have a more impactful season in 2024-25.
In a recent interview, Livingston spoke out about how the arrival of head coach Doc Rivers has helped him in his transition into the NBA as a rookie as well as how he hopes to crack the veteran shot-caller’s rotation this coming season.
“I think it’s been great, just learning him (and) him learning me. It’s been a process, but I understand what type of player he wants,” Livingston said, via Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “He needs dogs around his superstars. He needs guys that are going to do the little stuff, the dirty work.
“You can look at the previous history, the success that he’s had when he was the coach of other teams. Those types of players really thrive under his wing. I just feel like that’s the type of player I am, so I’m looking forward to him learning me even more and him really getting a liking to me. Hopefully, we can build our relationship as time goes on.”
Livingston averaged just 4.3 minutes per game last season, which obviously wasn’t enough for him to make a significant impact on the squad. The 20-year-old, however, knows that he can bring much more to the table for Coach Doc and the Bucks, which is exactly what he’s planning to do this coming season.
Staying Ready
Livingston is keeping his expectations in check, though. He knows that he won’t be playing 20 minutes a night this coming season and that he’s likely going to have some healthy DNPs here and there.
Nonetheless, the former Kentucky standout will do everything he can to stay ready for when his number is called.
“I think it’s just a different level of locking in. Asking coaches questions, watching film with the coaches, just being locked in as far as knowing where I gotta be,” he said.
“… I think just finding, embracing whatever the coach is telling me to do offensively to defensively, making that sacrifice … that’s going to be a big word for me: sacrifice. Just understanding (to) do what you’re told, do what’s asked of you. I’m just going to try to embrace it. I’m not going to look at it as a bad thing. Young players would be like, ‘He’s putting me out of position,’ or, ‘I’m not doing what I want to do in the court.’ At the end of the day, I’m just trying to do what I gotta do for the team to win and just be out on the court.”
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