Nigerian-Greek basketball star Giannis Antetokounmpo mentions one area his new club boss has improved the team
Milwaukee Bucks’ Nigerian-Greek basketball star Giannis Antetokounmpo has shared insights into one area new coach, Doc Rivers has improved the team.
The NBA star shared his thoughts in an interview with The Athletic’s Eric Nehm ahead of the All-Star break.
Antetokounmpo how important it was for him to become more vocal this season, particularly during the tenure of former coach Adrian Griffin. He highlighted the adjustments he made, including increased participation in film sessions and play diagrams, to adapt to changing team dynamics.
Reflecting on the coaching transition to Doc Rivers, Antetokounmpo expressed appreciation for Rivers’ leadership style, which brought a sense of stability and experience to the team.
He contrasted Rivers’ seasoned approach with Griffin’s first-time coaching experience, recognizing the challenges faced by both coaches.
“Things (weren’t) the way they were supposed to be, how can I say it?” Antetokounmpo said. “The last couple of years, I’m used to a specific structure of things, a specific culture, there’s a certain way that you have to do things in order for you to win games, you know? And if that level is not being met, as a leader, you have to push that envelope. Push everybody, your coaching staff, your teammates.”
The Bucks were 40-13 when they fired Griffin, who had spent the previous 15 seasons as an assistant coach with  Doc Rivers, who had been an NBA head coach for 24 consecutive seasons before spending the first few months of this season as an analyst for ESPN appointed as replacement.
The Nigeran basketballer is happy with the new coach: “[Rivers brought] some peace of mind,” Antetokounmpo said. “He’s tough. He’s Doc f—ing Rivers. He knows his s—. Same thing for Coach Bud. Same with Joe Prunty, J-Kidd. And Coach Griff was a great coach, a great person to work with, but, at the end of the day, it was his first time.
“He was figuring things out, how to lead a group of guys, how to operate with star players and sometimes, that might be hard. I think everybody did a good job. His coaching staff did a good job too, helping him and making him adjust and I think he did a tremendous job leading us to a 30-13 record, but Coach Doc has won 1,100 games. So it’s totally different.”
With a veteran coach at the helm, Antetokounmpo feels like quite a bit has been taken off of his plate.
“Now it’s almost like I don’t have to do that anymore,” Antetokounmpo said of the extra emphasis he had put on leadership to start the season under Griffin. “I just have to keep the guys together and try to go out there and try to win.
“Coach Doc, he’s a great guy, been in the league for a lot of years, won a lot of games. Like you go to bed, you sleep well at night. Win or lose, you know that the coaching staff is going to be prepared. And not just him, from Rex (Kalamian), from Dave Joerger, like come on, man, Joe Prunty, we have guys that are extremely smart and know the game of basketball. ”
