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Doc Rivers Held Private Meeting With Giannis, Damian Lillard Amid Bucks' Struggles

Things have not gone according to plan the past few weeks in Milwaukee.

Tyler Lauletta

Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo walks past head coach Doc Rivers.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo walks past head coach Doc Rivers. / Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
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The Milwaukee Bucks have been an up-and-down team all season. After starting the year off 1–6, the Bucks were able to rally a few weeks later to win seven straight games and get back to a winning record by the start of December.

From late February into March, Milwaukee went on another hot run, winning eight out of nine games to get to 36–25 on the year—11 games over .500, the best they’d been all season.

But lately, it’s been another downturn, with the Bucks dropping five of seven, including losses to the Magic, Pacers and Cavs—all teams Milwaukee could face in their upcoming run through the Eastern Conference this postseason.

According to NBA insider Chris Haynes, the team’s latest loss to the Golden State Warriors prompted head coach Doc Rivers to call a private meeting with the team’s two superstars—Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

“In this meeting I’m told was an open forum for both stars to provide input on ways to improve the team,” Haynes said. “It was a constructive session, with each individual being allowed to share their perspective.”

The Bucks currently sit in fifth place in the conference standings, and have 15 games left in the regular season to improve that spot before the playoffs. Just four years removed from a championship run, Milwaukee is hoping to find its stride and make it back to the Finals, but as their latest stretch of play has proven, there’s plenty of work to be done before they get there.

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Tyler Lauletta
TYLER LAULETTA

Tyler Lauletta is a staff writer for the Breaking and Trending News Team/team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI, he covered sports for nearly a decade at Business Insider, and helped design and launch the OffBall newsletter. He is a graduate of Temple University in Philadelphia, and remains an Eagles and Phillies sicko. When not watching or blogging about sports, Tyler can be found scratching his dog behind the ears.

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