The entire NBA fraternity were in shock when the Milwaukee Bucks sacked their coach Adrian Griffin. However, the players especially Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard will look to resume things back in high gear as we enter into the second half of the season.
Experienced coach Doc Rivers has been appointed as the new coach for the Bucks as they hold a decent record of 32-14 in the Eastern Conference.
During his announcement press conference, Rivers spoke about how his time at Marquette, a college located close to the Bucks’ home ground Finserve Arena played a role in him accepting this coaching offer. He is determined to make this work for the Bucks.
Later, Damian Lillard also expressed his desire to always work with Rivers who has been coaching for many years. He highlights how his long player career followed by his illustrious coaching career will surely help him in his stint at Milwaukee.
“I think when you’re dealing with a team that’s full of vets and as talented as we are, I think that’s something that you need if you wanna reach the level that we want to reach and I think he’s the perfect person for it,” Lillard said, talking about Rivers’ experience and coaching pedigree.
Lillard feels that to keep outside noise away one must work their best in the present. He believes that once they get the ball rolling things will eventually get better with Rivers around them now.
“I think the present is the best time,” Lillard added. “I don’t think it’s a situation where you want to just hold off or anything like that, just jump in and get the ball rolling. [Doc Rivers] has been around this week, he hasn’t coached yet but he’s been around just kinda seeing how things go and getting to know the team a little bit better.”
Rivers has an illustrious playing and coaching career as he won a lot of accolades in both roles. He never played for the Bucks but he featured for Marquette as a player. He was so good for them that they retired Jersey Number 31. However, his real test will begin now at Milwaukee where he has to manage the dressing room properly and also work hard on their defensive strategies.
