Even the Bucks assistant coaches are getting humbled during brutal losing streak

The Milwaukee Bucks are on the receiving end of harsh criticism after their 1-4 start to the season, and truly, it's hard to argue any of it.

While there has been no shortage of widespread embarrassment regarding players putting forth sluggish effort defensively and Doc Rivers continuously making baffling decisions, a recent story that came to light after Milwaukee's Halloween game showed that not even the Bucks assistant coaches are exempt from being humbled.

The Grizzlies destroyed the Bucks, and it didn't stop on the court

On Halloween, the Memphis Grizzlies, who were on the second night of a back-to-back and missing a handful of players due to injury, demolished the well-rested Bucks. One player leading the way for the Grizzlies was Scotty Pippen Jr., who finished with 16 points and three rebounds. Pippen made himself known off the bench all night long, and it was his rather stout defense that truly stood out.

Despite being just 23, Pippen welcomed the challenge of slowing down Damian Lillard, and it worked. Lillard finished the game with just four points, and Pippen's pestering played a big part. According to NBA.com/stats, Lillard shot 0-of-3 with Pippen as his defender. After the game, Pippen let it be known that he was seemingly fueled by his former coach and current Bucks assistant Darvin Ham.

“One of the coaches over there didn’t believe in me so I definitely wanted to show I can play some defense.”

Ham was Pippen's coach with the Los Angeles Lakers starting in 2022-23. However, the young guard never found himself in Ham's rotations, averaging 5.3 minutes across just six games during his rookie campaign. Since leaving and joining the Memphis Grizzlies, Pippen has shown that he's capable of being a rotational player, and he made sure Darvin Ham is well aware of that with this strong night.

This is not the start to the season that the Milwaukee Bucks envisioned. Nothing is going according to plan thus far for countless reasons. Although there is still plenty of time for them to right the ship, the team and coaching staff will have to dig deep to get out of this hole. Hopefully they all - including Darvin Ham - use everything that has happened as motivation to help fuel a needed turnaround.

At 1-4, the Bucks sit 14th in the Eastern Conference and clearly have some soul-searching to do.

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