The Milwaukee Bucks hiring Doc Rivers was always a terrifying premise. Sure, Rivers won a title back in 2008 with a stacked roster, but he's been riding that championship for over a decade with nothing else to show for it. As he always has, Rivers leaned on that title with the Milwaukee Bucks this season, and it didn't go over so well. ESPN's Shams Charania detailed the latest in his new piece.
Per Charania, Rivers called for a team meeting on March 2, an understandable stance after they just dropped a game to the lowly Bulls. However, the controversy set in immediately when Rivers started the meeting by telling those involved to look at his resume in an effort to say, "I took teams to the playoffs and to the championship that weren't supposed to."
That's not exactly the type of rallying cry a coach should give to give his team confidence. Charania confirmed it didn't go over well with Bucks players.
"The session was among a number of instances that rubbed large parts of the locker room the wrong way and continued the theme of a season-long disconnect between Rivers and the players, according to team sources."
Rivers' resume doesn't matter nearly two decades later
This isn't surprising. This is the same coach who said he doesn't get enough credit for the three wins he got when asked about holding the record for most blown 3-1 leads in the NBA Playoffs. If there's a way to deflect blame or bring up his success, Rivers will do it. Yes, Doc, you are a Hall of Fame coach. You have a few playoff wins. That's great. You earned it all. It hasn't led to anything since 2008.
It's not just people in Milwaukee who have been critical. When Rivers said that the Bucks job has been harder than he thought it would be early on in his tenure, his former player JJ Redick didn't hold back about the lack of accountability and deflecting Rivers does.
"I've seen the trend for years. The trend is always making excuses. Doc, we get it. Taking over a team in the middle of a season is hard... it's always an excuse. It's always throwing your team under the bus... there's never accountability with that guy."
The players clearly aren't buying into Rivers.
Per Charania, the coaching staff directed a message to Ryan Rollins and Kevin Porter Jr. about being selfish and needing to lead this team. Kyle Kuzma, someone else who could gloat about his lone title if he wanted to, allegedly told the pair "not to worry about the coaches and to be their best selves moving forward." Rivers benched Kuzma for the first DNP-CD of his career after getting wind of that.
That's not the type of person who brings players together. Rivers bringing up his resume sounds more in line with something that would be said by one of the talking-head personalities on sports talk shows these days, which is ironically right where Rivers was when the Milwaukee Bucks asked him to become their next head coach.
Bucks need a hard reset this summer
Rivers was never the right man for the job. Yet, the Milwaukee Bucks knew he was the most notable name available and pounced on him. Not all of Milwaukee's issues fall on Rivers' shoulders, but he is certainly to blame for some of them. Some would say a good chunk. The disconnect between all of the players and coaches has been clear from day one. And look where it's gotten everyone.
Rumors are already swirling that the Milwaukee Bucks are ready to move on. It shouldn't even be a question at this point. There's a reason things never worked out with the LA Clippers despite all of their talent. There's a reason the Philadelphia 76ers flamed out again and again. And, of course, there is a reason the Bucks, despite some talented rosters, are ultimately crumbling.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analysis.