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Doc Rivers is no longer the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, ESPN reported Sunday, citing sources.
Rivers left his broadcasting job to return to the NBA sidelines as coach of the Bucks shortly after Adrian Griffin was fired 43 games into the 2023-24 season. Rivers now leaves Milwaukee after a 126-106 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, capping a 32-50 season that ended with a missed NBA playoff berth.
Rivers has coached the Bucks to first-round playoff eliminations in each of the last two seasons.
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April 6, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, United States; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers drives against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. (Stephen Lew-Imagn Images)
The Bucks will now launch their third head coaching search in the last three years. Rivers’ departure comes amid uncertainty surrounding the future of franchise star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers speaks to the media during a press conference during practice before the Emirates NBA Cup semifinals at T-Mobile Arena. (Kyle Terada/Imagn Images)
The NBA trade deadline passed in February without a deal involving Antetokounmpo. The two-time league MVP saw limited action during the 2025-26 season, appearing in a career-high 36 games.
Antetokounmpo suffered from a knee hyperextension and bone bruise during the season. He was then sidelined for a series of games, fueling speculation that the Bucks cut him while he was healthy, sparking an NBA investigation into the star forward’s handling.
Antetokounmpo’s frustration boiled over when he insisted he was healthy enough to play despite playing in his 10th straight game when Milwaukee faced the Boston Celtics on April 3.
“I’ve never seen a player say, my caliber of player is like – I say this publicly – I want to play. You know what I’m saying?” he said, via Athletics. “I don’t think I saw that. So if there’s going to be an investigation, great. There should be. I don’t know. There should be. Until we find something.”
He then said he was “available to play”.
Rivers responded to Antetokounmpo’s comments following the team’s 133-101 loss.
“The hardest part about this is I’m in the middle and I had nothing to do with it,” Rivers said. “The coaches don’t decide any of that. The problem with our league is the coaches are the ones sitting in the front.
“And we have to sit here and answer these questions. I think there are two sides to this question – I’ll tell you – but I don’t want to get too involved in that.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo and head coach Doc Rivers of the Milwaukee Bucks talk before the third quarter against the New York Knicks at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on October 28, 2025. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Rivers added that he didn’t like that the feud had become “public.”
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Antetokounmpo averaged 27.6 points and 9.8 rebounds this season. He was named NBA Finals MVP when he helped the Bucks win the franchise’s first championship since 1971.
Rivers coached the Celtics to the NBA title in 2008. He was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in 1983. After retiring as a player, Rivers went into broadcasting, calling NBA games. In 1999, he was named head coach of the Orlando Magic, a position he held until 2003.
Before returning to the coaching ranks, Rivers was part of ESPN’s main NBA broadcast team.
