When Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst acquired Jericho Sims at the trade deadline, it was seen as a low-risk, high-reward move to address one of the team’s most glaring needs: their utter lack of athleticism and versatility in the frontcourt outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo.
With Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis struggling to keep up with the speed and physicality of modern NBA bigs, Sims was supposed to be the solution. But there’s just one problem—Doc Rivers, known for his propensity to stick to aging but proven veterans over younger, unproven talent, simply refuses to play him three games since the NBA Trade Deadline.
In the past few games, despite Lopez and Portis getting torched by players like Mouhamed Gueye of the Atlanta Hawks and Quentin Post of the Golden State Warriors, Rivers has stubbornly stuck with his veterans, leaving Sims glued to the bench.
It’s a baffling decision that’s making Horst look foolish for trying to fix a problem his coach won’t acknowledge.
The Bucks’ frontcourt issues have been well-documented this season
To be clear, none of this is to paint Sims as some savior. At the end of the day, he's a young player who still has a lot to prove in his career. There's a reason he hardly got minutes with the Knicks: according to Cleaning the Glass, Sims is in the 49th percentile in defensive rating and the 40th percentile in offensive rating. He simply hasn't been able to translate his athleticism and physical tools to winning team basketball.
While the on-court sample isn't looking too good, the potential is clear. Playtype data on NBA.com/stats says Sims is in the 85th percentile among bigs in defending the pick and roll. He's far from proficient at defending out on the perimeter (evidenced by his 0 percentile ranking at defending the isolation), but opposing scorers are also shooting 42.2 percent whenever Sims is the closest defender.
The point is this: he's the kind of player where you simply have to take the good with the bad, and Doc Rivers hasn't realized that yet.
Brook Lopez, while still a dominant rim protector, has lost a step defensively and struggles to guard quicker, more athletic bigs. Bobby Portis, for all his energy and scoring ability, is a defensive liability who often gets exposed in pick-and-roll coverage and against stretch bigs. Together, they form a pairing that’s been repeatedly exploited by opposing teams.
Against the Atlanta Hawks, Gueye had his way with Lopez and Portis, using his athleticism and agility to dominate the paint and stretch the floor. Against the Golden State Warriors, Post did the same, exposing the Bucks’ lack of speed and versatility in the frontcourt. These performances were a stark reminder of why Horst brought in Sims in the first place. But instead of turning to the young, athletic big man, Rivers has doubled down on his veterans.
Jericho Sims is exactly the kind of player the Bucks need right now. At 6-foor-9 with a 7-foot-3 wingspan and elite athleticism, Sims brings the speed, energy, and versatility that Lopez and Portis lack. He’s a lob threat on offense, a relentless rebounder and a versatile defender who can switch onto smaller players and protect the rim. In short, he’s the perfect antidote to the Bucks’ frontcourt woes.
Yet, for some reason, Rivers has been reluctant to give Sims meaningful minutes. Instead, he’s continued to lean on the Lopez-Portis pairing (often in the same lineups), even as it’s become clear that the two can’t coexist effectively. It’s a baffling decision, especially when the Milwaukee Bucks’ championship hopes are on the line.
While he quite obviously isn't there yet in terms of his development, Sims very clearly fits in the archetype of the modern NBA big—a player who can defend multiple positions, run the floor and finish at the rim.
Doc Rivers’ refusal to play Jericho Sims is undermining Jon Horst’s vision for the Bucks. Horst made a bold move to address the team’s frontcourt issues, but Rivers’ stubbornness is rendering that move meaningless. If the Milwaukee Bucks want to make a deep playoff run, they need to find a way to fix this issue—and that starts with giving Jericho Sims a chance to prove himself.
The answer is right in front of Rivers’ face. If Rivers doesn’t act soon, he may find himself on the wrong side of history, watching another championship opportunity slip away because he refused to make the obvious adjustment. The clock is ticking, Doc. What are you waiting for?
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