Doc Rivers Rips Bucks After Humbling Loss to Grizzlies: ‘We Had Some Guys in Cabo’

The Milwaukee coach wasn’t happy with his team’s focus ahead of the All-Star break during Thursday’s loss to Memphis.

The Milwaukee Bucks continue to struggle under new coach Doc Rivers. It’s been 10 games since Rivers replaced Adrian Griffin as coach of the Bucks, and early on the results have been lackluster, to say the least.

The team fell to 3–7 in the Rivers era following a Thursday night loss against the Memphis Grizzlies, 113–110. The Bucks enter the All-Star break on the heels of back-to-back defeats, prompting Rivers to suggest after the defeat that he felt some players had checked out early.

“We had some guys here. We had some guys in Cabo,” said Rivers after the game, via Eric Nehm of The Athletic. 

Despite the Grizzlies being without multiple key players, including Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Desmond Bane, Milwaukee was unable to pick up a win. GG Jackson, the NBA’s youngest player, dropped 27 points, tied with Ziaire Williams for Memphis’s team high. 

The Bucks shot an abysmal 25% from three-point range during the loss, hitting just 11-of-44 attempts from beyond the arc. Despite a 35-point, 13-assist double double from Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee dropped its seventh games in its last 10 contests. 

The decision to move on from Griffin and replace him with Rivers—while holding the No. 2 seed in the East at the time—was met with some scrutiny, and early on the return on the team’s coaching change has not proven beneficial.

Rivers wasn’t happy with his team’s performance on Thursday, and didn’t hesitate to rip the Bucks over their lack of focus during their final game ahead of All-Star weekend.