(Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Despite a 30-13 record during the 2023-24 NBA season, the Milwaukee Bucks brass decided they needed to make a change at head coach.
The Bucks made the surprising move to fire former head coach Adrian Griffin and bring in Doc Rivers.
Rivers was doing broadcast spots on ESPN, but accepted a four-year, $40 million deal to lead Milwaukee.
An NBA champion with the Boston Celtics, Rivers has the credibility and resume to coach a team like the Bucks though coming in midseason is a challenge for anyone.
The Bucks and Rivers will have some growing pains in the early days of their partnership, but they’re starting to figure things out on the floor.
After a win over the Dallas Mavericks, Malik Beasley spoke about how Rivers has changed the way the team operates via Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
“That was definitely one of the first times in my career where we put something in one day and it’s been executed to an exact T the next day,” Malik Beasley said. “And that shows how great Doc is and it shows how great our players are in understanding that and doing it.”
𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 is what Doc Rivers was brought in for.
The Bucks spent 90 minutes Friday installing a brand new defense to use against one of basketball’s premier offensive players.
And it worked. Like a charm, writes @eric_nehm.https://t.co/3Y34KHGxwU pic.twitter.com/yhXM5Pzd0a
— The Athletic NBA (@TheAthleticNBA) February 4, 2024
Beasley is a key part of the Bucks’ starting five and he and the rest of the starters have had to adjust on the fly as Rivers tries to implement his own system.
However, Rivers is a clear communicator who knows how he wants things executed and the players are responding well.
Milwaukee has a long way to go to get back to the Finals, but this was a positive step in that direction.
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