The Milwaukee Bucks begin the 2024-25 campaign with a lot of expectations on Head Coach Doc Rivers. Last season, Rivers was criticized heavily as the Bucks won just 19 out of the 39 games they played under his coaching, after starting the season with a resounding 30-13 record under former HC Adrian Griffin.
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Superstar guard Damian Lillard may grow impatient if things don’t pan out this season. Perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo has also hinted that his relationship with the franchise can end if they have another disappointing season.
Rivers and his coaching staff have a difficult task to do. As they try to figure out ways to make a dysfunctional roster work, let’s take a look at the team of coaching staff Rivers will be leading this year.
Head Coach: Doc Rivers
Rivers is among the only 10 head coaches in NBA history to win 1,000 games in his career. He is best remembered for carrying the Boston Celtics to their 17th championship in 2008. Before the Bucks, he was the HC of the Philadelphia 76ers from 2020 to 2023.
He is also remembered for being at the helm of the Los Angeles Clippers from 2013 to 2020. The 63-year-old began his coaching journey with Orlando in 1999. In 2022, the NBA named him on the list of the greatest 15 head coaches of all time.
Assistant Coach: Vin Baker
Baker has been an assistant coach for the Bucks since 2018. He was a part of the Mike Budenholzer-led coaching staff that propelled the squad to the 2021 championship. Baker was also a former player for the Milwaukee Bucks from 1993 to 1997 and represented them in three All-Star Games.
Assistant Coach: Rex Kalamian
Kalamian was hired as an assistant coach when Rivers was appointed as the HC in January of 2024. He has been an assistant coach in the league since 1995 and worked on Rivers’ coaching staff from 2018 to 2020 with the Clippers. Kalamian is also the head coach of the Armenian men’s national team.
Assistant Coach: Joe Prunty
Prunty has been an assistant coach for the Bucks since 2023. He had previously been an assistant head coach for the team from 2014 to 2018. He has been one of the key figures in overseeing the development of Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Assistant Coach: David Joerger
Joerger has been part of Rivers’ coaching staff as an assistant coach since January. Previously, he was a head coach in the league for six seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and the Sacramento Kings. Joerger also won the D-League championship as the HC for the Dakota Wizards in 2007.
Assistant Coach: Pete Dominguez
Dominguez became the Bucks’ assistant coach when Rivers was appointed as the HC. Dominguez has been a part of Rivers’ coaching staff since 2018, previously working as a coaching associate for the 76ers and the Head Video Coordinator for the Clippers.
Assistant Coach: Spencer Rivers
Spencer Rivers joined the Bucks coaching staff ahead of the 2024-25 season. The 29-year-old was one of the assistant coaches under Monty Williams’ Pistons last season. He had also spent three seasons with his father, Doc Rivers, on the Philadelphia 76ers staff as their player development coach.
Assistant Coach: Greg Buckner
Buckner joined Rivers’ coaching team ahead of the 2024-25 season. He has been an assistant coach in the league since 2017 and was promoted to be the Associate Head Coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2022.
Assistant Coach: Darvin Ham
Ham joined the Bucks as their assistant coach before the 2024-25 season. He was the head coach for the Los Angeles Lakers from 2022 to 2024 but was fired immediately after the 2024 playoffs as the Lakers exited in the first round. Ham was part of Budenholzer’s coaching staff when the Bucks won the title in 2021.
Assistant Coach: Jack Herum
The Bucks promoted Herum to both head of player development and assistant coach in July 2024. Before that, he worked as a player development coach and a video assistant for four years with the franchise.
Assistant Coach: Jason Love
Love joined the Bucks’ coaching staff ahead of the 2024-25 season. Last season, he worked as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia 76ers under HC Nick Nurse.
Head Athletic Trainer: Scott Faust
Faust has been the Head Athletic Trainer for the Bucks since 2016. Before that, he worked as an assistant trainer for the 76ers from 2006 to 2015 and as an associate trainer/rehabilitation coordinator during the 2015-16 season. Assistant trainers Michelle Ruan and Jessica Cohen are also a part of his team.
