Kofi Inkoom
The Milwaukee Bucks are shaking things up in their coaching staff, with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reporting the dismissal of Adrian Griffin.
This comes as a surprise, given the Bucks’ strong 30-13 record, tied for second-best in the NBA.
Adrian Griffin has the best record by a head coach to be dismissed during a season since David Blatt was fired by the Cavs 🤯
🔸Blatt — 30-11
🔸Griffin — 30-13 pic.twitter.com/t6NJ9D6cUO— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 23, 2024
Griffin, in his first year as head coach since joining in June, faced challenges, particularly in the team’s defensive performance, which dropped significantly from last season’s fourth-best ranking.
Despite a solid record and the NBA’s second-best offensive rating at 120.6, Griffin’s defensive strategies fell short, reflected in Milwaukee’s 22nd ranking with a 116.8 defensive rating.
The season also saw some bumps, such as top assistant coach Terry Stotts unexpectedly stepping down before the season and on-court disagreements, including a heated moment between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Griffin in November.
According to Chris Mannix of SI.com,
“There have been steady rumblings for weeks in NBA circles that several Bucks veterans, including Giannis, had lost faith in Griffin. What appeared to be smart hire last spring just never worked out”
In the aftermath of Griffin’s dismissal, there’s buzz about the Bucks considering Doc Rivers as the new head coach, as reported by Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report.
Rivers, who recently parted ways with the Philadelphia 76ers after a second-round exit, has ties to Milwaukee, having played collegiately for Marquette.