Photo by Kyle O Sullivan / Unsplash
By Charles Collier
The Milwaukee Bucks have been non-competitive as of late. A pivotal moment in the Bucks’ disappointing season came recently, when hometown fans booed Giannis Antetokounmpo and the team on January 13, as they trailed by 31 at halftime against the Minnesota Timberwolves, eventually losing 139-106.
Giannis was clearly upset about being booed by home fans. “I Never. Have I? I don’t think so,” responded Antetokounmpo after being asked if he had ever been booed at home. The Timberwolves embarrassed the Bucks despite playing without their stars, Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert. As for an explanation (or excuses), Bucks’ forward Bobby Portis offered this: “Play a good team with all their players, we kind of lock in and it’s always a great game for us, but sometimes when we play a team with their starters out, we kind of take it down to the level of our competition. Hate to say that, but that’s just what it is. We’ve just gotta do a better job of just locking in for 48 minutes no matter who is playing and giving ourselves the best chance at the end of the game.” After the loss, the Bucks record fell to an underwhelming 17-23, and they are currently in 11th place out of the 15 teams in the Eastern Conference (the top 8 teams in the conference make the playoffs).
The Bucks need to strengthen their roster, and many fans think it’s time for coach Doc Rivers to move on. Coming off a four game West coast road trip from January 4 – 11, Doc Rivers said the Bucks were beaten off the dribble all night against the Timberwolves. “We just didn’t have it, we were flat,” said Rivers. In my opinion, Doc Rivers should be terminated immediately. The Bucks have not even won a playoff series during Rivers’ tenure. Many critics of Doc Rivers highlight his track record of playoff losses despite holding series leads, his shortcomings in making in game adjustments, his tendency to make excuses and publicly criticize players, and the consistent underachievement of talented teams under his leadership. These failures can’t be overcome by the mere fact that he is charismatic, is a Marquette legend, and has had decent success in past regular seasons.
For the Bucks to be successful in the future, they must be aggressive in the trade market. Multiple reports indicate that the Milwaukee Bucks are exploring a trade for Memphis Grizzlies’ guard Ja Morant, viewing him as an ideal star to complement Giannis Antetokounmpo. Proposed trade scenarios involve the Bucks sending players such as Bobby Portis and Kyle Kuzma, along with draft picks, to Memphis. True, saying goodbye to fan-favorite Bobby Portis would hurt, but letting go of Doc Rivers and acquiring Ja Morant through a trade are two strategic moves the Bucks could – and should – pursue to stay competitive and restore their winning legacy.