Rivers would be taking over a team that is chasing its second NBA title in four years and has shown a sense of urgency in the moves it has made over the last year.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Doc Rivers is finalizing a deal to take over as the Milwaukee Bucks coach a day after the firing of Adrian Griffin, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Rivers and the Bucks were still negotiating on Wednesday, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because no contract had been completed.
ESPN, where Rivers has worked this season an analyst, reported that Rivers has agreed to a deal in principle. ESPN’s public relations department
Rivers’ 1,097 regular-season wins put him one shy of Larry Brown for eighth most in NBA history. His departure from ESPN brought an emotional reaction from his broadcast teammates, Mike Breen and Doris Burke, before ABC aired the Dallas-Phoenix game on Wednesday night.
“Our dear friend has decided that life as an NBA broadcaster is way too stressful, so he’s decided to opt for a less-stressful job — an NBA head coach on a team that’s trying to win a championship,” Breen said on the broadcast. “We thank him for all his many weeks of service and we wish him all the luck in the world.”
Rivers would be taking over a team that is chasing its second NBA title in four years and has shown a sense of urgency in the moves it has made over the last year.
Milwaukee followed up the hiring of Griffin by acquiring seven-time all-NBA guard Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers to team him with Antetokounmpo, who signed a three-year, $186 million contract extension shortly before the season.
Horst acknowledged the dynamic of the team had changed since Griffin’s arrival.
“These are special opportunities,” Horst said. “The talent became even more special. The commitment to the team even more significant. And I think that increased the urgency.”
Doc Rivers of the LA Clippers argues a call against the New Orleans Pelicans at HP Field House at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 01, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Rivers’ immediate task at Milwaukee would be to upgrade a defense that performed poorly enough under Griffin to cast doubt on the Bucks’ title hopes. The Bucks entered Wednesday night ranked 21st in defensive rating, down from fourth last season.
“Defensively, we have a talent group I think that can be better than what they’ve been so far,” Horst said. “Is that a top-five defense, a top-10, top-15? I don’t know. That’s what we’re trying to decide here with the roster as constructed.”
Although the Bucks have one of the league’s best records, they face a much tougher schedule the rest of the way. They’ve gone just 7-5 in January, though they’ve won six of their last seven.
“There’s been a lot of expectations on our team,” Lillard said. “Things have been expected to look a certain way. We’ve kind of had a bumpy road to our success, which is sometimes a part of the process, but like I said, I was surprised.”
Those struggles had led to some frustrations from players in postgame media sessions, but Horst disputed the idea Griffin had lost the locker room. Three-time All-Star forward Khris Middleton expressed a similar sentiment.
“I feel like any time a coach gets fired, that’s the first thing you hear – he lost the locker room – when that’s not always the case,” Middleton said. “That’s just the easiest thing to say. No, I won’t say that.”
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