Giannis Antetokounmpo got real about the relationship he’s formed with Doc Rivers since the veteran coach took over the franchise midseason. Giannis called the experience of playing under Doc as ‘incredible’, also saying he loves Doc and has a lot of respect for him.
“I love him. It’s been incredible playing for him. He just explains to me what he wants from me. You respect him because he’s been 25 years in the league. The transition has been very, very hard. This is my fourth coach in [nine] months. … But I love how things are going so far.”
The start to Doc’s tenure in Milwaukee has been extremely rough, as the experienced head coach has started his time with the team with a 5-7 record. The Bucks were the closest competitor the Celtics had for the No. 1 seed, but under Rivers, there’s been a clear adjustment period which has caused the team to pick up a lot more losses than wins.
Giannis is having one of the best seasons of his career, averaging 30.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 6.4 assists while shooting 61.6% from the field. The defense was troubling under Adrian Griffin Sr., but Giannis has shown flashes of the DPOY-level defense we expect from him under Doc. Unfortunately, Rivers’ has caused a slowdown in the team’s offense which has cost them.
With defensive fundamentals returning to the Bucks, it’s only a matter of time before their offense is clicking again. Most of that responsibility will fall on Damian Lillard’s shoulder, as he’s been off-kilter over the last few months. He’s averaging a disappointing 24.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 6.8 assists on 42.3% from the field this season.
Doc Rivers Did Not Ask For The Bucks’ Job
Doc Rivers was happy on the sidelines this season, becoming a lead commentator for ESPN after being fired by the Philadelphia 76ers. But when the Bucks unceremoniously fired Adrian Griffin, they were scrambling to find a top-level coach to continue their championship push this season. As a result, they made Doc an offer he couldn’t refuse in the $40 million region.
What’s funny is that Doc has made it clear in interviews as Bucks head coach that he advised the Bucks front office against firing Griffin and hiring him, but they pushed on with it regardless.
“To be honest, I told our owners when they called, I said, ‘I don’t understand why you’re doing this.’ One of the things they said was, ‘It doesn’t matter we’ve done it now and we want you.’ So, that was a tough one and that’s where you have hesitation.”
Since accepting the job, Rivers has been consistently downbeat on what he could achieve this season. He has repeatedly said he wishes no other coach in the NBA has to go through this situation. Rivers also candidly revealed over All-Star Weekend that the job has been far tougher than he expected.
Hopefully, Rivers’ takes Giannis’ recent comments as a show of support and actively tries to help the franchise instead of accepting their fate because he was a midseason hire. They’ve won their last two games and currently have a 37-21 record.
