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Bucks GM Jon Horst addresses details surrounding the call to dismiss Adrian Griffin

Horst shed more light on the details regarding the firing of Adrian Griffin.

Jonas Panerio

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Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst finally lent his voice to shed light on the dismissal of head coach Adrian Griffin.

Horst said that when he first took on the role, Griffin—who built a reputation for being a defensive guru during his time as an assistant on the Toronto Raptors—inherited a defensive-minded squad led by point-of-attack defender Jrue Holiday and rugged wingman Grayson Allen.

However, the team's dynamic suddenly shifted when the Bucks acquired seven-time All-Star Damian Lillard—a supremely talented scorer but not known for his defensive prowess—in a blockbuster trade with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Opportunity to win now

Horst shared that the decision to hand Griffin the pink slip was a difficult one but one that had to be done to maximize the team's chances of adding another NBA title.

“It was a tough job and a great opportunity – both things were true – when we hired Griff. The dynamics and the things that changed after that I think, created even more of an urgency and even more so. These are special opportunities. The talent became even more special. The commitment to the team even more significant. And I think that increased the urgency,” Horst said.

The urgency that many in the organization, from players to the front office, did not feel from how the team performed at the halfway point of the season. While the offense has been spectacular, the defense has remained a sore point from the start of Griffin’s tenure until the end.

The Bucks rank 25th in points allowed per game (120.5 points per game) and 21st in defensive rating (117.4).

A decision had to be made

Firing a coach who has led a team to a 30-13 record is not an easy thing to do. However, Horst explained that it is part of his job to “figure out how to improve this team.”

“For us, we felt like this was the right time, the right decision to make, and that we had an opportunity to improve the group. And there isn’t a specific instance. There isn’t a specific timing to it. It’s just going through it and evaluating and looking the dynamic’s different,” Horst remarked.

“Giannis extended. Khris committed. Brook committed. We were able to acquire Dame. These are hard windows to come by. These are special opportunities. We think we have a special group and believe in this team at a high level, and ownership, myself and Peter (Feigin), we’ve continued to be bold and to be aggressive in figuring out how to try to maximize these chances that we have. And that’s what we’re doing here," he concluded.

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Jonas Panerio
JONAS PANERIO