Bucks will fire Rivers, Ham is expected to be promoted to serve as head coach, and plans to interview Malone and Jenkins

The latest report by Emmet Prother, a reporter from the Milwaukee Sentinels, the Bucks' primary job in the offseason is not to consider Antetokounmpo's trading issues, but to fire head coach Doug Rivers and replace a coach who is truly capable of coaching the Bucks to win the championship. Rivers has been proven to be not a playoff head coach countless times, and the Bucks' chief assistant coach Darwin Ham has become a popular candidate for the new head coach.

The Bucks lost the game in an unacceptable way, losing the series, and ending the 2024-25 season. There is no clear answer to whether the star Antetokounmpo continues to stay or apply for a deal. The voices of head coach Doug Rivers being dismissed are high. "The game has 40 seconds left to lead by 7 points, and is basically sure to win. The Bucks not only lost the lead, but also lost the game." Emmet Proser said, "Rivers has had this sudden collapse more than once in their coaching career. He coached the Magic, Celtics, 76ers and the Clippers all lost their victory in the playoffs."

Last season, Rivers could use coaching midway as a reason to lose. This season, the Bucks gave Rivers a complete offseason, training camp, preseason, and 82 regular season games, and the coaching effect was not outstanding. Lillard's injury cannot be an excuse for Rivers to fail. Rivers did not effectively integrate Lillard, Antetokounmpo, Kuzma, Portis and other players, and did not form team combat effectiveness on both ends of offense and defense, and there was no chemical reaction between Lillard and Antetokounmpo. The Bucks' regular season record was 48 wins, 34 losses and the winning rate was 58.5% and was completely unqualified. Facing the top three teams in the Eastern Conference, they were 0 wins and 10 losses, and were swept 4-0 by the Cavaliers and 3-0 by the Celtics and the Knicks. It is hard to believe that the team with Antetokounmpo and Lillard will have no chance of winning against the three strongest teams in the East.

The firing of Rivers has become a serious discussion at the Bucks' senior management. Bucks owners Wes Edens, Mark Lasri and legendary Junior Bridgeman, who just became the Bucks' small boss, all believe that Rivers may no longer be suitable for coaching the team. "Although injuries can be regarded as a factor in the Bucks' failure, the coaching staff is undoubtedly a clear shortcoming." Emmet Proser revealed, "Rivers' stay and leave will become the first domino in the offseason. Next is Lillard's injury recovery, team offseason trading, free agent signing and Antetokounmpo's stay and leave."

Rivers is relatively slow in both pre-match game plan and on-the-spot adjustment. When the Bucks are forced to the edge of the cliff by the Pacers, they will come up with the best lineup and mention Trent to the starting lineup. This lag-back adjustment is regrettable. Facing his better opponent Rick Carlisle, Rivers acted like the head coach who just coached the NBA team, and it was too late every time he came back to his senses. The Bucks have never reached the upper limit of their strength under the coaching of Rivers. Whether it is due to slow adjustments, excessive use of misplaced veterans or frequent defensive loopholes, the team has never been able to form a joint force.

"The team needs a new voice, and this time, they must choose the right person. Since the firing of Budenholzer, the plan has been repeatedly frustrated. Although all the mistakes and all the blame can be attributed to the coach, it is indeed a key factor. The Bucks and Rivers parted ways, it seems to be a foregone conclusion." Emmet Proser confirmed that the Bucks' internal idea of ​​firing Rivers to replace the head coach is consistent. In today's league, the head coach's fault tolerance rate is extremely low. The Suns have just fired Budenholzer, who has coached for a year. Before the playoffs approached, the Nuggets fired Mike Malone, who led the team to win the championship in 2022, and the Grizzlies dismissed Jenkins, who has led the team successfully for a row. Referring to the dismissal trend of the league head coach, combined with the bad situation of the Bucks, someone must take responsibility, and it will be difficult for Jon Horst to continue to keep Rivers in office for hundreds of years.

The Bucks fired Antetokounmpo's favorite head coach Adrian Griffin and gave Rivers a four-year, $40 million coaching contract. A season and a half passed, and Rivers did even worse in the head coach position. "I can tell you without a doubt that Doug Rivers is a bad coach." The 76ers and the Clippers have worked with Rivers in an interview bluntly said, "Rivers may be a good person, but he is really not the head coach who can lead the team to win the championship. It was an accident to coach the Celtics in 2008, and he was unable to replicate that success after that." If the Bucks are not sure of the candidate for the new head coach after the final fire Rivers, neither Mike Malone nor Jenkins have found a new coaching job. After the Bucks fire Rivers, they plan to interview Malone and Jenkins. In addition, it is not ruled out that Darwin Hamm is promoted to become a new head coach.