By CNN
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The Milwaukee Bucks fell to their seventh defeat in 10 games under new head coach Doc Rivers on Thursday night, losing 113-110 on the road against the lowly Memphis Grizzlies.
Rivers agreed to join the Bucks in January, as first reported by CNN Sport, leaving his role as an analyst at ESPN to replace Adrian Griffin on the sideline. Griffin’s firing came as somewhat of a surprise, as Milwaukee had a 30-13 record at the time of his departure, tied for second-best in the league.
The Bucks’ latest loss, against a Grizzlies side that is well below .500 and has been ravaged by injuries all season long, drops them to 3-7 under Rivers.
A miscommunication on the final play of the game – after the Bucks had cut a nine-point lead to just three with under a minute to go – summarized Milwaukee’s performances under Rivers so far.
Bucks center Brook Lopez attempted to set a screen at halfcourt for All-Star Damian Lillard but unintentionally blocked the point guard’s path. The ball came loose and Lillard missed a wild last-second attempt from long range as Memphis held on for the narrow victory.
With Thursday being the last night of regular season action before the All-Star break, Rivers was not exactly pleased with his team’s effort and felt that some of his players already had one eye on time off.
“We had some guys here and some guys in Cabo,” Rivers told reporters after the game.
The Bucks have two 2024 All-Star starters on the roster, Lillard and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, and are third in the Eastern Conference, despite their recent struggles. Memphis, meanwhile, came into the game with no less than 10 players on its injury report, including two-time All-Star guard Ja Morant and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr.
The shorthanded Grizzlies did not let the perceived disparity in firepower stand in their way, with forward Ziaire Williams and rookie GG Jackson II scoring 27 points each.
“It feels good, proud of this team,” Williams said after the game. “It’s good to see. One man falls down, and another one steps up. We’re having fun through it all, can’t ask for more.”
Antetokounmpo led the way for the Bucks with 35 points and dished out 12 assists and Lillard added 24 points in the shocking upset. Rivers was frustrated with his team for letting shorthanded Grizzlies get the upper hand.
“I thought the start of the game set the tone,” he said. “When you start a game out, with a team that has key guys out, and you allow them to make layups and threes, now they’re confident.
“These guys (Grizzlies role players) have been stars somewhere in their life. Don’t remind them of that.”
Milwaukee now sits at 35-21 on the season, 8.5 games adrift of the first-seeded Boston Celtics. The Grizzlies improve to 20-36 and are 13th in the West in a season that took a sharp turn once Morant was ruled out for the year with injury.
