Bucks are making a HUGE MISTAKE in hiring Snake Oil Salesman Doc Rivers

John Gonzalez, Bill Reiter and Ashley Nicole Moss react to the Bucks hiring of Doc Rivers.

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The Bucks fired Adrien Griffin I’m blown away by this they’re 30 and 13 they’re three and a half games out of first place gang only one team the Boston Celtics in the entire NBA has a better record this is some Premier League stuff yeah I mean go ahead bill go ahead

I I mean I was just gonna say it is it is shocking but not surprising I think is where it come I mean it was an Open Secret around the NBA that Adrien Griffin wasn’t on Jak ground and Milwaukee but the fact that he’s out when they’re 30 and 13 not after some

Bad you know run of play where they’ve lost a bunch of games in a row and and the Doc Rivers who at least reportedly was an advisor to Griffin to try and help him as a rookie head coach succeed decided the best advice to give was to

Fire Adrien Griffin now the Bucks push back on this and hire him is Peak dock rivers and Ash I don’t know where you come down this for me look there’s two sort of worlds on this for me it’s it’s an utter disaster I think Doc Rivers is

A disaster of a head coach that is certainly shared by not everybody but but plenty of people around the NBA the stats speak for themselves there’s been let me just rattle through them because I think it’s amazing they hired this guy 30 there have been 13 teams that have

Been up 3-1 in in NBA seven game playoff series and still lost and three of them have been coached by Doc Rivers he is six and 10 in game sevens he is 17 and 33 in closeout games for his team and if you’re going to fire a guy guys who and

Adrian Griffin who might have had some issues who might have had some faults who maybe didn’t have the total confidence of the veterans in that locker room who’s 30 and 13 you’re making the argument it’s because we don’t think he can succeed in the postseason that’s exactly what Buck

Sources have told me in the last couple hours and to turn to a guy who has a demonstrated history of not succeeding in the postseason John something you know emotionally and I think if you look at the facts we all know intellectually actually I don’t I don’t understand it

And I absolutely hate it yeah I mean there’s a lot to unpack here I think for me you know it was reported that Adrien Griffin you know had 14 different head coaching interviews throughout the league and finally landed in Milwaukee it’s also reported via Mark Stein and a

Bunch of other insiders that Giannis backed this hiring he was all for it you know they the Bucks consulted with Giannis when they were going through the process of looking for a new head coach after firing coach bud so Giannis was behind it at some point was no longer a

Believer in Adrien Griffin and you have to you have to really wonder why because the Bucks are doing better this season this time than they were last year last year they were 30 and 17 this year they’re 30 and 13 and for a team that some will argue didn’t really think

There was much postseason hope obviously this was before Damen Lillard and before some of the other moves they made you have to wonder okay now you’re in a better position than you were last season how do you not go ahead and give a head coach the opportunity to prove

Himself where it matters most and that’s in the postseason and much to Bill’s point you then hire a coach who for all intensive purposes has been a failure in the post season I mean Bill ran through the numbers 13 three in one leads blown in the NBA Doc Rivers has the record for

Three of them I mean like he said six and 10 in game sens the list goes on and on that this is not a guy who can win in the postseason and if that is what the goal is for this team which I think it is especially now that you have Damien

Lillard you know you went ahead and filled the void of losing Drew holiday and things like that how do you then go ahead and hire a coach who may or may not even get you that far it’s just a very confusing situation and I think one

Thing that kind of rubs me the wrong way also is Doc Rivers was available Doc Rivers wasn’t you know tied to a team it’s not like he was already the head coach someplace else he was very much available and this is the coach that she wanted because it seems you know per a

Bunch of reports that the Bucks were Consulting with him as far back is December then why not why let this man coach more than half the season just to go with the coach it could have gotten in the first place it just makes absolutely no sense it’s a little shady

I’m just I don’t know it it run it’s a lot Shady it’s a lot shady I mean to have to have uh and and as Bill said he’s gotten pushed back from the Bucks that uh they had doc installed as this behind the scenes advisor to Griffin but

It certainly seems like this wasn’t working out well for the bucks because there were rumors early early in the season that especially defensively that things were not going well under Adrien Griffin and we’ve seen what happened yes they moved Drew holiday off the team but they fall right now they have the 2

Second defensive rating right in the NBA after being a team that prided itself on playing defense and there were these rumors these Rumblings all around the league that hey things aren’t really going well with the defense that he’s implemented here and I think like looking back on it now Terry stots

Resigning as an assistant before the season even how to be a clue oh it was a huge clue and looking back right because I know Terry a little bit and people that are close to Terry a lot and their view on this right if you sort of talk

Them on background was it was just Terry was disrespected he’s a prideful guy impressive guy but also they were planning this narrative that that it’s not g to work it’s not going to go well he doesn’t want to be a part of it let look I’m going to give you the Bucks

Perspective I I’ve talked to some folks there I am not saying that I agree with this perspective or that we can we need to buy into this but here is Milwaukee’s contention for whatever it’s worth because one of the big let’s just do a real talk Doc Rivers has a reputation

For being a backstabber in the NBA that doesn’t mean that it’s true it’s just true that he has a reputation with some people for being that guy and I think the easy joke because the Athletics reporting was he was hired as an adviser to find a path forward for Adrien

Griffin and the path forward was pushing him under a bus and then taking his job that’s the joke right all right so according to people in the Bucks organization take it or or leave it because people certainly lie sources certainly lie I’ll just say you what

I’ve heard they say that that that Doc Rivers was never an actual official adviser in any capacity they push back on the athletic report and they claimed there was one meeting in Las Vegas with John horse who’s the GM with the now fired Adrien Griffin and with Doc Rivers

A couple days in Vegas before they actually played in that in inseason tournament uh also claim that Adrien Griffin lost the locker room that there was a disconnect before that meeting so before in theory Doc Rivers got involved and they also claim that they are going

To be very very patient with Doc and that they’re going to be very active in at the trade deadline okay those are my sources so I’m not sure I buy it but I’m not sure I’m supposed to say that but I’m just there’s that’s that’s what they’re selling there’s push back for me

On that I mean for one I don’t understand I can I can understand the defensive aspect or lack thereof with Griffin right but I don’t understand how you lose a locker room sitting at number two in the East you’re 30 and 13 I can understand there being concerns perhaps

About as the season progresses what is our defense going to look like there are some games we lost that we could I can understand all that but to go as drastic as losing a locker room there have been coaches with losing records that still have their locker room so for me it’s

Hard to really believe that a guy that Giannis wanted a guy that Giannis was a part of bringing into the organization they lose that he loses that locker room with a winning record it’s very hard for me to believe don’t think they fir him without janis’s permission here just

Like I I don’t disagree with that either but I also find it very hard to believe I also find it very hard to believe that Doc Rivers just came out of left field and there was no conversations behind closed doors there was this was the one andone situation we had a meeting with

That doesn’t make any sense because also we’re going to go ahead and call a spade a spade some of the other names that were thrown into the mix were um Nate McMillan Jeff Van Gundy there are other coaches from both an offensive and Def right there’s other coaches from

Both sides of the ball both sides of the game offensively and defensively that I believe would have been a better fit for this team that wants to go ahead and get better defensively but also needs to stay top five top 10 offensively especially as we go down the stretch in

The season I think you’re I think you’re missing this here I think it’s an awesome awesome hire for the rest of the EAS for the rest of the Eastern Conference I think it’s really fantastic and I wish the Bucks nothing but the best I mean we were talking

About you know the kind of success or La lack there of that uh the doc has had in his career 24 seasons as a head coach he’s reached the Conference Finals twice couldn’t get out of the second round with the Clippers couldn’t get out of the second round with the Sixers he

Has one title that’s as many as Rick Carlile in 22 Seasons I like Rick Carlile a lot I mean would you I think I’d rather have Rick Carlile and John you’re missing you don’t you don’t forget to add the meat here look at the teams he’s had he had the Lob City

Clippers he had Joel andb Prime Ben Ben Simmons and didn’t go to the finals with any them like 10 years of two contenders never made a I think I read this to you guys yesterday can I just read I just want to back John up here because this is so

Petty and mean but it is this is a text I think I read this to you guys the other day but I’m gonna repeat it from from a a rival arrival executive when the news came out that doc was probably gonna get hired and the other Eastern Conference contenders breath easier

That’s the main takeaway for me look I like the people in the Bucks organization I’m from that part of the country and I root for small Market teams but ashh on I think the main overarching point you had a colossal opportunity to hire a bunch of Championship level coaches Nick nurse

Who’s doing wonders for your Sixers was available Frank Vogel won an NBA championship he’s available Monty Williams not an NBA champion but he coached the Suns to a championship game and a beloved a championship series and a beloved figure was available now maybe you weren’t going to pay the money that

Obviously Detroit PID there are options so you go and hire you don’t hire Nick nurse you hire his assistant and get it so wrong that you have to fire in 33 games 43 games into the season and then you hire Doc Rivers who was available it’s also I think a disaster for that

Front office and that organization if this doesn’t work out and to me to all of your points other than John who loves it for his Sixers this is panic mode for for Milwaukee two things can be true at once Adrien Griffin could have been the wrong higher and maybe it’s bold to move

On but if you hire Doc Rivers right if you have a if you have a leaky if I have a leaky ceiling and I got to fix it the solution is not to burn my house to the ground and it feels like that’s the Milwaukee Bucks have done that’s what

I’m trying to figure out here because they’re second in offensive rating I don’t think that doc comes in and all of a sudden like supercharg is an already supercharged offense right they’re 21st in defensive rating is Doc like the defensive Guru that’s gonna fix this

Team and get him into like the mid tiers something like that I mean I mean I I’ve seen doc coach in La up close in personal with those Lob City Clippers and then have the Sixers and what I’ve learned about watching Doc teams is he’s pretty set in his weights he has his

Rotations that he likes he doesn’t really like staggering certain guys they have their roles he’s kind of like a a tibs and he won’t run his guys into the ground for 40 straight minutes but he definitely has he definitely has his set pieces that go like you know certain

Parts of uh the game like in the second quarter third quarter whatever where guys will rotate in and out like as prescribed he’s not a flexible guy so this looks like a situation where despite the the fact that they’re second in the in the Eastern Conference clearly

Something is going on behind the scenes that requires a remedy and that to me would say oh we need somebody to come in and like figure out what’s right for this team rather than being like this is the way I do it this is the way I’ve

Always done it this is the way we’re going to continue to do it and honestly John I mean I’m not so much concerned about the regular season this Milwaukee Bucks team is gonna be top three top five I’m sticking with top three my first like this team will figure out a

Way to win in spite of Doc Rivers I don’t feel like they’re going to completely go ahead and offensively I don’t think they’re going to tank I don’t think you’re going to see a drastic fallof from offense they’re going to be able to score points you have Damen Lillard you have Giannis

They’re going to make that work but what we’re talking about is the postseason we’re talking about banners and championships parades and rings and it has been shown time and time again that if that is what your goal is of the or of your organization which this is the

NBA it’s the goal of every organization whether it’s real realistic or not that is always the end goal it has been shown time and time again you go back to your 76ers Joel embiid Ben Simmons you go to the Lob City Clippers Chris Paul Blake

Griffin he is not and by he Doc Rivers is not the coach that is going to take you there this is a coach we have seen blow multiple three in one leads I don’t understand that if this is the goal and you’re in panic mode we got to win we

Got to win now we have D we have Giannis we got to do it we got to keep him Happ happy how is that your decision he’s shown you he can’t take you there it’s not a mistake it’s happened time and time again this is who Doc Rivers is

He’s a good regular season coach but when it gets down to the nitty-gritty he’s not taking you to the promised land and I don’t give him this immense amount of credit for what he did in Boston I could have coached that team and won them a championship they were that

Freaking good like we we got I take that out of the equation he hasn’t been able to do it since he’s not that guy I’ve always thought of I’ve always thought of docas and this is something that I’ve said forever I think that there are probably like five coaches in the league

Where you go they’re better than everybody right you’ve got Kerr and SPO and pop and throwing a couple others and you’re I would throw nurse on that list I wouldn’t put I hear you and you go they’re better than everybody I’ll take them over everybody and then there’s

Five guys at the back of the league where you’re like man I don’t want them at all I guess Adrien Griffin’s in that in that category now and then in the middle and then the middle there’s just gu there’s just guys and forever doc has just kind of been a

Guy I think you’re being nice to Doc I I think he’s a Serial underachiever in the postseason who has constantly thrown people under the bus and is not viewed viewed as as authentic in a lot of his locker rooms I do want to Circle back to your your defensive question though

Because there was I don’t know if you guys saw this a postgame press conference that I think does that does show that that Giannis was out on his head coach where Giannis basically said are we going to ever have a defensive play are we ever going to make any

Defensive decisions it was pretty it was pretty on the nose and directed at Adrian Griffin and I think that for Doc Rivers if it is as if it was as bad tactically as it s as some people think it was in Milwaukee for in terms of

Under agan Griffin what he was doing Doc Rivers just has to be okay for the defense to improve I think there’s going to be to your point Ash I think there’s going to be the illusion this is what he does of Excellence from Doc Rivers and the Bucks this perspective of

Improvement because it might it might be that Adrian Griffin was just over his skis in this job and then when we get to the playoffs and Doc Rivers gets up 3-1 with this Buck team against anybody it’s called the doc loock and gambling then you put all the money on the other team

Like I I think you’re right Ashley it’s going to be fine in the regular season I think they’re going to look really good it’s disaster I think that is lurking in the playoffs but we are really of the Doc Rivers fan club here AR we we should send it to his

Publicist listen I have no beef with Doc Rivers I my be he not very good is that a beef just that it’s it’s just that I’m going to call a spade a spade and the Spade is he’s a great regular season coach he’s mediocre or less than in the

Playoffs and how he continues to fall forward honestly should be studied because it’s honestly incredible because if this was any other coach he would be like in the announcer Booth by now which Doc Rivers was I don’t understand why understand I I can answer your question

How he falls forward he gets jobs as advisers despite what the Bucks are claiming to me he’s a dirty maer he yeah he gets a job as an adviser to a young coach who’s vulnerable and then is like here’s my advice see you buddy very very uh the NBA has installed the kangela

Behind Sam hanky and now all of a sudden the Colangelo are running the organization I guess if you can get the gigs get the gigs uh the the Bucks are at the Cav no they host the Cavs tonight with Joe prony as the interim head coach

Before Doc Rivers takes over by the way second time Joe pry has been the Bucks interim head coach he did this when Jason kid Yeah by way doc not shocking but Doc Rivers won’t coach Tonight official told Doc Rivers they’re not going to rush him they’re not going to

Rush him into Milwaukee so pry gets to officially coach as an interim yet again one more one more uh time for Joe pry we wish him godspeed and make sure you to read uh Bill’s piece onoc Rivers is being hired on cbssports.com