[ad_1]
MILWAUKEE – On Saturday, as Giannis Antetokounmpo sat at his locker following the Milwaukee Bucks’ 141-117 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, he held his left hand under his chin and considered the question about his new head coach during a couple of seconds before responding.
This was the first time he spoke publicly about Doc Rivers and took the job seriously.
That seriousness is the same seriousness in which Rivers told reporters he would embrace the expectations that come with being the head coach of the Antetokounmpo-led Bucks.
“I’ve learned that you’d rather have them than not have them,” Rivers said of expectations. “When I took the job in Boston (in 2004), I got a lot of calls from coaches telling me not to take the job. “The expectations will be too unrealistic.” I’m like, what? That’s ridiculous. You want that. You want expectations. And this team has them.”
For anyone who has previously doubted the high level of expectations, the decisions made by general manager Jon Horst since the Bucks lost to the eighth-seeded Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs last season have shown that winning games is not It’s enough in Milwaukee. The Bucks are trying to win another championship.
That’s why the Bucks fired Mike Budenholzer, the NBA’s winningest regular-season coach and 2021 NBA champion, after last season’s first-round upset. That’s why the team acquired All-Star point guard Damian Lillard in late September. That’s why the Bucks fired Adrian Griffin earlier this week after he helped lead the Bucks to a 30-13 record in his first 43 games as an NBA head coach. And that’s why the questions after the Bucks’ win over the Pelicans on Saturday night weren’t as focused on Saturday night’s win (their seventh in nine games).
Instead, questions for Antetokounmpo and Lillard focused on their thoughts on their new coach and how Rivers could help lead the Bucks to a championship.
After a few seconds of contemplation, Antetokounmpo finally responded about his new coach’s desire to accept the expectations that come with coaching this star-studded team with sky-high expectations.
“That says a lot,” Antetokounmpo said, after adding 30 points, 12 rebounds and four assists in the Bucks’ dominant victory. “You could tell what it’s made of. It’s hard. It is difficult to accept this job.”
“If you lose, it seems like the whole world is ending. You win by five, why didn’t you win by 20? You have Giannis, you have Dame, you have Khris (Middleton). It’s hard. Nothing is good enough. Only one championship is enough. We’ve gotten to that point, which is crazy. But I’m accepting it. I’m fine with that. I can sleep well at night. And I think having someone who, you know, isn’t uncomfortable with it, is confident. “Having someone like that, I think it improves the atmosphere in the locker room.”
For Antetokounmpo, part of the confidence in Rivers comes from his extensive resume: the 24 years Rivers has spent on the sidelines of the NBA.
“We know he’s played tough games,” Antetokounmpo continued. “We know that he has played in two NBA finals. As if he had been there before. We have been there once. We want to go back there. And, sometimes, having experienced people by your side helps you.
“When it’s hard, when you’re faced with challenges, when things don’t go your way, having someone who can tell you, ‘Hey, I’ve been here before. This is what we are going to do. This is how we are going to attack it. This is how we must stay together. Don’t worry about expectations. We have to do this as a team.” Someone who can give you that guidance, that clue, it’s always great to have in your locker room. So, I’m excited that he understands that we’re trying to win a championship. I think everyone in this locker room understands that.” .
And although Antetokounmpo had told the story before, he reminded reporters Saturday night that the first NBA game he remembers watching was a 2008 NBA Finals game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics. That Celtics team, of course, was coached by Rivers and would win the NBA title that season.
“Fast forward, 16, 17 years later, he’s in the same locker room, and I have to do what I can to help this team, and I have to follow his example,” Antetokounmpo said. “So, I’m excited. He is a legend in this league. He has accomplished great things in this league and I hope we can accomplish great things together.”
Like Antetokounmpo, Lillard pointed to Rivers’ last four decades in the sport as one of the main reasons for leaning on his new head coach.
“We all know what he brings to the table,” Lillard said. “We have heard his voice, him coaching other teams. We know he has been successful. He played in this league. He went to school in this city. He has been a coach for a long time. He has coached many great players. It would be hard to think of anything he hasn’t experienced in this league, from playing to coaching to talking about the game on all of these different broadcasts.
“So, it’s nothing he hasn’t experienced. And I think his voice, his ability to motivate teams, is a strong voice. And he is going to demand more from our team. He won’t be afraid to challenge myself. He won’t be afraid to challenge Giannis. He won’t be afraid to challenge Brook (López) and Khris. And until the end. So, I think when you’re dealing with a team that’s full of veterans and as talented as we are, I think that’s something you need, if you want to reach the level that we want to reach. And I think he is the perfect person for it.”
GO DEEPER
What does Doc Rivers need to fix as Bucks coach? Identify top priorities
As we reported in our initial story on Griffin’s firing, helping Lillard feel more comfortable in Milwaukee will be an important part of Rivers’ job in Milwaukee. Lillard is going to start in the 2024 NBA All-Star Game and has put up great numbers this season (25.3 points and 6.8 assists per game), but more than halfway through their first season together, the fit alongside Antetokounmpo he has not. been perfect. Antetokounmpo also once again achieves NBA MVP numbers this season (31 points, 11.7 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game). And yet, the Bucks just don’t seem to be together this season.
When exploring the idea after Saturday’s game, Lillard felt the Bucks’ current situation is quite similar to the situation Rivers found in Boston when the Celtics brought in former NBA MVP Kevin Garnett and seven-time All-Star Ray Allen to join forces with Paul Pierce. , who had established himself as a star in Boston despite never reaching the NBA Finals.
“I think his greatest success as a coach came in a situation where there were extreme expectations in Boston,” Lillard said. “You have Kevin Garnett, who was MVP in Minnesota. You have Paul Pierce, who was one of the best players in the league for a long time. You’ve got Ray Allen coming in there. You have (Rajon) Rondo, one of the best point guards in the league. And then you throw in Doc and you have some expectations.
“They expected to win. You were in that kind of market where city people really care, similar to here. They want to win. They are demanding it. And I think because of his experience (not just in the good times, but also in the bad), of being criticized and having people jump on you for not being successful, he has felt it. And I think any time you experience that in that way on both sides, you know how rewarding it can be to come out on top. And I think as you look at our team, you feel like we have a chance to do that. “So, you want someone who has had that type of experience to lead your team in this type of situation.”
For Lillard, Rivers’ experience with the championship team in Boston, as well as his experience handling situations with multiple star players, will help him in Milwaukee if he ever needs to have difficult or stressful conversations with the Bucks’ star players in Milwaukee.
While both players expressed their trust and belief in their new coach, like Rivers, they didn’t shy away from how much work the Bucks have left to become championship contenders this season and how little time they have left to do so before then. the playoffs begin.
“I don’t assume, and I don’t expect, that by the time he comes in, we’re 5-0 or 10-0 or whatever, like it’s going to take time,” Antetokounmpo said. “Are we going to change our offense? Will our offense remain the same? Are we going to change our terminology? Are we going to change our settings on defense? Are we going to change our practice plan? What will the practice be like? What will the shooting practice be like? All those things.
“Different coaches, different routines for everyone, so it will take time. But I think the most important thing he emphasized is coming together as a team. The more we are together as a team, the faster we can get to where we want to go.”
On Sunday, the Bucks embark on a five-game road trip that will pit them against five talented Western Conference teams (the Denver Nuggets, Portland Trail Blazers, Dallas Mavericks, Utah Jazz and Phoenix Suns) in nine days. After interim head coach Joe Prunty led the Bucks to a 2-1 record through the process of firing one coach and hiring another this week, Rivers will coach his first game against the Nuggets on Monday.
Let the work begin.
(Jon Horst and Doc Rivers Photo: Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)