"Milwaukee, Giannis, save yourself" - Ashley Nicole Moss believes Doc Rivers is not fit for another HC job after Bucks stintÂ
Sports journalist Ashley Nicole Moss has grown unimpressed with Doc Rivers as a coach since his Milwaukee Bucks are underperforming despite having a talented roster led by All-Stars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.
Moss made her sentiments known on her CBS Sports program on Tuesday, highlighting how Rivers has not proven himself as the coach needed for a team like Milwaukee.
"Doc Rivers should not get another head-coaching job after his stint in Milwaukee," Moss said. "He is not the guy. He is a regular season coach. I don't care what he did with the super team in Boston, the Celtics. I could have coached that team and had them win a championship. They were just that good.
"Doc Rivers is not the coach you think he is. We've been shown this in multiple different ways with multiple different teams, multiple different years. Enough is enough. Milwaukee, Giannis, save yourself."
The Bucks are sporting a 3-8 record to start the 2024-25 season and are 12th in the Eastern Conference. Since joining the team midway last season, Doc Rivers has compiled a 20-27 record. The Bucks (3-8) are 12th in the Eastern Conference to start this season. He replaced Adrian Griffin after he led the team to a 30-13 mark in 43 games in his first season with the team.
Rivers won an NBA title with the Celtics in 2008 but has not replicated the same success in coaching stops after with the LA Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers and, right now, Milwaukee, punctuated by a number of playoff heartbreaks and underperformances along the way.
Doc Rivers remains confident Bucks can steady ship and make the playoffs
Doc Rivers is confident that the Milwaukee Bucks can move past their early struggles and make the playoffs, where they will try to make a deep run. The coach has said they are still in the process of steadying the ship but is fully confident with the team making it all the way to the postseason.
"We will make the playoffs. I'm not worried about that," Rivers said on Monday (via The Athletic). "The team's very positive. I think they're upbeat. No one wants to lose. We have some tough games coming up, but one win at a time. We win three or four in a row and then the numbers say if you're 5-6 after that, you have an 80 percent chance to make the playoffs, you know?
"So, that's where numbers are so silly sometimes, especially early in the year. And we don't pay much attention to them."
The Bucks defeated the Toronto Raptors 99-85 on Tuesday at home in their NBA Cup debut to halt a two-game slide. They return on Wednesday to host the Detroit Pistons.