The Milwaukee Bucks suffered their third loss in four games under Doc Rivers’ tenure on Sunday night against the Utah Jazz. The Bucks were cruising at one point, taking a 19-point lead. However, the young Jazz team outplayed Milwaukee as the game progressed and eventually burned down the Bucks in the fourth quarter.
The Jazz had a 40-13 advantage in the fourth quarter, which forced the 123-108 comeback win. The Bucks had a 1-3 stretch just once this season, which came late into ex-head coach Adrian Griffin’s tenure. Rivers facing that issue right into the first few games isn’t encouraging.
The Bucks’ woes defensively have worsened under him, while the offense hasn’t performed close to what it was during Griffin’s stint. The Bucks’ only win against the Dallas Mavericks with Rivers on the sidelines on Saturday wasn’t easy, either. The Bucks had to fight back from a 25-point deficit to secure the win.
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With a clunky run to begin the Doc Rivers era, NBA Twitter (now “X”) rained down on the 2008 championship-winning coach after the Bucks’ latest collapse.
“Doc Rivers weekly choke jobs are back,” one fan wrote.
More reactions followed:
Doc Rivers outcoached by Will Hardy as Bucks suffer 4th quarter meltdown
The Milwaukee Bucks seemingly got comfortable after taking a 19-point first-half lead. The Bucks came out flat after the break. While their lead stayed on for a brief stretch, the Jazz kept chipping away with crucial makes due to their efficient adjustments.
Doc Rivers and his staff took too long to shake things up and paid the price for it. The Jazz did well to limit Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, which the Bucks had no counter to. Utah forced the Bucks’ supporting cast to make plays, contributing greatly to their comeback attempt.
The Bucks, playing on the second night of a back-to-back, lacked the effort and intensity after a point. Rivers not opting to play MarJon Beauchamp and Andre Jackson Jr. turned out to be a questionable choice because of that.
The Bucks got outrebounded 62-43, giving the Jazz an advantage in second-chance points (13-4). The nine-point swing was undeniably costly, given how Utah got back into the game.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis had 33 and 27 points, respectively, while Damian Lillard struggled with a five-for-18 outing. He had only 12 points.
Lauri Markkanen (21 points), Collin Seton (19 points) and Keyonte George (19 points) led the Jazz’s charge. Utah’s bench had 55 points compared to the Bucks’ 14.
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