The Milwaukee Bucks released Adrian Griffin and hired Doc Rivers to improve an underperforming team. So far the opposite has happened and the team hit a new low on Thursday.
When the Bucks faced an undermanned Memphis Grizzlies team in the second half of back-to-back games, they were overloaded and outplayed en route to a brutal 113-110 loss. The loss drops them to 3-7 since Rivers took over for Griffin and gives them a 35-21 record before the All-Star break.
Rivers hammered his team after the gameespecially their discipline and commitment:
“First move of the game, we put it in the corner for the 50th time. The guy runs, we have to help, leads to a 3. On our set, two guys forget what we're running. Then we missed a shot and no one comes back. This is how we start the third quarter. That tells you everything you need to know about where our heads were.
“We had some people here, we had some people in Cabo.”
Obviously these sound like the mistakes that are made when a team is not well coached, although it is important to remember that Rivers has been in charge for a little less than three weeks and may still be trying to tinker with what which was not well trained. It doesn't work.
They can cut Rivers some slack this early in his tenure with the Bucks. But probably not enough margin to excuse a loss to this Grizzlies team.
The Grizzlies are 20-36 and just played their ninth game in 15 days this month. They were also without more than an entire starting lineup, including Ja Morant (shoulder), Marcus Smart (finger), Jaren Jackson Jr. (quad), Desmond Bane (ankle), Luke Kennard (knee) and Brandon Clarke (Achilles). ) everyone didn't play. The team also just traded big players Xavier Tillman and Steven Adams.
Doc Rivers is still sorting things out with the Bucks. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)
With all of this talent, the Grizzlies' starting lineup consisted of Santi Aldama, Ziaire Williams, Trey Jemison, Vince Williams Jr. and Jordan Goodwin. None of these players have been in the NBA longer than 2021 and only one (Williams) was taken in the first 25 picks of their drafts.
With all due respect to these players, this is not a lineup that a Bucks team with Giannis Antetkounmpo and Damian Lillard should beat, no matter how much Milwaukee is still working to figure things out. And yet they couldn't stop Williams (27 points on 9 of 13 shooting) and backup GG Jackson II (27 points on 10 of 17 shooting).
There was also a question of execution, such as the Bucks' final play:
The good news is that the Bucks now have eight days to rest and regroup. The bad news is that thanks to the Bucks' success under Griffin, Rivers will have to spend some of that time coaching the Eastern Conference All-Star team.
It's been a bizarre season for the Bucks, and they must continue it with a tough road test against the West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves on February 23rd.