Bucks coach Doc Rivers faces backlash after loss to Portland

Doc Rivers. Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Bucks coach Doc Rivers faces severe backlash after loss to Portland

By Sai Mohan | Last updated 2/1/24

'He actually had Dame inbound the play with the Bucks down 3?' were among the many complaints on social media about Doc Rivers' coaching after Milwaukee lost to the lowly Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.

In what was Damian Lillard's homecoming to Portland, the Bucks — trailing by three — had a chance to send the game to overtime with 4.6 seconds on the clock. However, Rivers chose to have Lillard inbound the ball to Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was instantly fouled and sent to the charity stripe.

Antetokounmpo would miss both free throws.

Conventional wisdom suggests that Lillard — the player with the most game-tying or game-winning shots since 2012 — should have taken the last shot.

Doc Rivers really had Dame inbound to Giannis knowing Blazers will foul pic.twitter.com/63OallunI3
— BrickMuse (@BrickMuse) February 1, 2024

Besides the many fans on social media, NFL legend Shannon Sharpe and former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas also ripped Rivers' coaching during their "Night Cap" podcast.

"Why the hell were you passing the ball to Giannis? Of all the players on the court, Giannis would be the last guy that would make both of those free throws," Sharpe fumed.

Arenas, meanwhile, had a rather extreme take on Milwaukee's future under Rivers.

"The best thing for the Bucks is to go into the locker room and say, 'Hey Doc, listen, we changed our mind. We're gonna go with the guy [interim coach Joe Prunty] who gave us the wins when we fired the other dude [Adrian Griffin]. So, Doc, pack your s—t, we're gonna finish the season without you.'"

Earlier in the fourth quarter, with 17 seconds on the clock, Lillard had the chance to make a three to give the Bucks a two-point lead. However, he passed up the shot to an open Brook Lopez, who missed it.

This sequence also received a ton of flak since the Bucks were down only one and could have drawn up a play for the dominant Antetokounmpo in the paint.

After the game, Rivers defended his controversial coaching decisions.

"We got what we were looking for, it just didn’t work out," the veteran coach said.

“[Brook] probably should have fired it right back to Dame if he wasn’t going to take it”

Doc on Bucks second to last offensive possession pic.twitter.com/Z1gFLNVNdV
— Bucks Breakdown (@Bucks_Breakdown) February 1, 2024

The second-seeded Bucks (32-16) are now 0-2 since Rivers took over as head coach.

If their woes continue, they are in danger of falling to the fourth seed considering the streaking Knicks (31-17) and Cavs (29-16) are just a game and a game-and-a-half behind them, respectively, for the second seed.

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