Doc Rivers left his broadcast job at ESPN last month to become the network’s new head coach. milwaukee bucks. The Bucks were 30-13 the day they fired Adrian Griffin. So far, Milwaukee is 3-7 under Rivers. No team is under more pressure to right the ship in the “second half” of the season than the Bucks.
Even before the Bucks started losing, Rivers was making excuses in Milwaukee. Rivers explained why it’s so difficult to take over a team in the middle of a season. His comment quickly became a meme. Once the Bucks started losing, the excuses continued. Rivers said this after the first half ended with Milwaukee losing to the seriously injured Memphis Grizzlies. “There were some guys in Cabo.”
Enough about former player and current analyst JJ Reddick. Redick accused Rivers of making excuses and throwing players under the bus during an ESPN television appearance Tuesday morning. With Doc in Milwaukee, Redick will be appearing on ESPN’s NBA Finals broadcast in Rivers’ place. Watch the clip here:
JJ Redick calls out his replacement, former head coach Doc Rivers, during ESPN/ABC’s NBA Finals broadcast.
“I’ve seen this trend for years. This trend is always making excuses. Sir, I get it. It’s hard to take over a team in the middle of the season… It’s always an excuse. pic.twitter.com/NeTGnP1Suw
— Terrible announcement (@awfulpayment) February 20, 2024
Reddick started by making a great point: While it’s tough for a player to be traded mid-season, they rarely have the luxury of using it as an excuse if they play poorly. If this Bucks job was that difficult for Rivers, all he had to do was turn down the Milwaukee job offer and stay at ESPN.
Rivers famously threw Ben Simmons under the bus. philadelphia 76ers They were eliminated during the 2021 NBA Playoffs. It was a habit Rivers had throughout his career. He’s media savvy and good at getting his message across, but it feels like it’s starting to fall on deaf ears.
The Bucs’ record under Rivers has been abysmal, but Doc already appears to have made some progress since replacing Griffin.of milwaukee The defense ranks 10th in the league since Rivers took over on January 29th. After finishing 21st under Griffin. The Bucks’ biggest problem these days isn’t Rivers, it’s Damian Lillard’s extended slump.
The current debate over the Bucks and Rivers doesn’t really matter in the end. Milwaukee is in full championship-or-bust mode and will be judged more on how long they reach the playoffs than anything else. Yes, Rivers has a long history of taking series leads in the playoffs. If he does it again, he’ll feel like he can shrug him off no matter what spin he decides to put on it.
Doc has to find a way to get Lillard right. He needs to keep his defense near a top-10 level and continue to fine-tune the pairing of Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Bucks still have a championship ceiling, but no one wants to hear excuses down the road.
