On Tuesday, the Milwaukee Bucks announced that the team was parting ways with first-year head coach Adrian Griffin only 43 games into his tenure leading the team. The decision caught everyone by surprise as the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Bucks were 30-13 under Griffin’s tutelage and were second in the Eastern Conference standings. Griffin’s dismissal miffed Charles Barkley and the TNT analyst launched a verbal tirade against the Bucks’ players blaming them for his untimely exit from the franchise. On Thursday’s episode of Inside the NBA, the Hall of Famer said,
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“I feel bad for Adrian [Griffin]. Because it was his first head coaching job. The players got him fired. This is 100% on the players. Your coach can’t make you play defense. Defense is the hardest part of basketball. That’s on you.”
Under Griffin, the Bucks had the joint-second-best offensive rating with 121.5, trailing only the Boston Celtics (121.7). They were the second-highest-scoring team in the league, averaging 124.8 points per game. However, their defensive frailties were too stark to ignore. Their defensive rating of 117.3 ranked 20th in the NBA. They gave up 120.4 points on average, which ranked 25th in the league.
Barkley claimed the Bucks’ defensive woes were an indictment of the roster construction and the players’ attitude rather than Griffin’s tactics.
“I guarantee you he tried to get them to play better defense. We’ve been talking about it for two months. They’re arguably the worst defensive team in the league. They’ve got zero athletic ability on the perimeter other than Giannis [Antetokounmpo]. They’re slow. But your coach can’t make you play defense. That’s a personal pride thing.”
While Griffin may not be entirely at fault, it’s easier for teams to deploy new tactics under a different coach rather than overhaul their roster midseason. Despite the Bucks’ incredible 30-13 record, the hierarchy felt the team was trending in the wrong direction and decided to move on from their rookie head coach.
While Barkley was perplexed, Shaquille O’Neal claimed he wasn’t surprised because nothing in the NBA catches him off-guard. The Hall of Famer claimed he wished the Bucks gave him more time to implement his tactics but added that teams chasing championships will make tough decisions because that’s the cutthroat nature of the business.
Giannis Antetokounmpo breaks silence about Adrian Griffin’s firing
Since Adrian Griffin’s surprise sacking, there’s been eager anticipation about Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s take on the situation. The two-time NBA MVP broke his silence with a four-minute-long rant during the post-match press conference following the Bucks’ 126-116 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Antetokounmpo claimed he was sick of the NBA’s cutthroat nature and rubbished rumours that he had issues with coach Griffin. He added that he was surprised by the head coach’s sudden exit from the franchise and claimed management did not consult him before making the decision. He said,
“I get paid to defend, block shots, and I try to stick to that as much as I can. I don’t like that aspect of it. There’s people that get paid a lot of money to make those decisions, and those decisions are hard. I gotta respect [Bucks GM] Jon [Horst] because it’s hard. It’s not easy. But personally, I don’t want to be involved in that. I don’t like that.”
Antetokounmpo and the Bucks managed to mute the noise surrounding the team and beat the Cavaliers with interim head coach Joe Prunty leading the team. They now await former Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Clippers, and Philadelphia 76ers head coach Doc Rivers‘ arrival. The veteran coach has already been named as Griffin’s successor. He’s now tasked with leading the Bucks’ title chase.
While he’s been offered a three-and-a-half-year contract, it’s clear that the franchise’s top brass expect immediate results from Rivers. If he fails to deliver, he, too, would be shown his way out of the door.
