The Bucks are going to have to rebuild starting this summer, beginning with the bench, where Doc Rivers will not continue. This was reported by ESPN and The Athletic at the end of the last game of the regular season, a 126-106 loss to the Sixers. The coach still has one more season left on his contract but is negotiating with the franchise to make the jump to the offices. He recently said that, at 64 years of age, he had little time left in coaching, as he wanted to spend more time with his grandchildren.After two and a half seasons, the coach will not continue in his position. He leaves with a record of 97-103, two first-round playoff losses and a campaign, the current one, in which he has not been able to compete for a place in the title series: record of 32-50. His greatest success was winning the NBA Cup in 2024. “I enjoyed the challenge, but it didn’t work out the way I wanted it to. I could have done a better job. We could have been healthier. We could have had a lot of things,” he said in his farewell.
The big question, the one that has marked the entire season, is now what the future of Giannis Antetokounmpo will be. After Rivers’ press conference, the Greek player spoke for 10 minutes with the media. “I don’t know. It’s not up to me. We’ll see,” he said when asked if he had already played his last game with the Bucks.Antetokounmpo has not played a game for Milwaukee since March 15, when he suffered a hyperextension in his left knee. Surrounded by trade rumors for some time, he has had a difficult season in which physical problems have made him come and go from the team. The 36 games are a career low. And the divorce with the Bucks is total: he wanted to play, the franchise said he was not recovered and even the NBA launched an investigation into it. “I have no control over the situation. I don’t think I’ve ever had any return-to-play protocol,” he lamented.
Renewal or transfer
Bucks owner Wes Edens made it clear that Antetokounmpo will either renew his contract or be traded before he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer. Asked about this, the Greek player appealed for patience. “We’ll see when the time comes. Somebody has to offer it to you to sign it. I haven’t been offered an extension. So, if that option is on the table, I’ll try to make the best decision for me and my family. And if it’s not an option, I have to focus on how I can improve my worth, get to work and do what I know how to do,” he said.At 31 years of age, Antetokounmpo could be one of the big names on the market in the summer. Despite his physical problems this season, his worth is still enormous. When healthy, he is a candidate to be among the best quintets in the NBA. Whoever gets him will take a step forward in their aspirations to win a ring. His continuity in Milwaukee, after such a turbulent year with reproaches from one side and the other, does not seem to be the best option.
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