BREAKING: Bucks hire legendary coach, just six hours after shock sacking

The Milwaukee Bucks have wasted no time replacing the fired Adrian Griffin, with the franchise announcing they’ve hired Doc Rivers as head coach.

Griffin was released from his duties in a shock dismissal that comes with the team ranked second in the Eastern Conference standings with a 30-13 record.

It was reported soon after that Rivers was being tossed up as a possible replacement, news that was confirmed just over six hours after Griffin was sacked.

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Rivers has been in the broadcast booth this season since he was let go from his head coaching role at the Philadelphia 76ers after a loss in the conference semi finals last May to the Boston Celtics.

In addition to his broadcasting responsibilities, Rivers was serving as an informal consultant to Griffin. A month later, he is replacing Griffin.

Griffin, 49, was appointed in June after the abrupt sacking of predecessor Mike Budenholzer, who was ditched after the Bucks crashed out of last season’s playoffs in the first round.

There had been few clues that Griffin’s position was under threat, with the Bucks making a solid start to the season that has left them with a 30-13 record — the second best winning percentage in the league.

It also ranked as the best record held by a head coach who was then dismissed during a season since David Blatt in 2015-16 (30-11).

Griffin’s last game in charge was Tuesday’s 122-113 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

ESPN reported that assistant Bucks coach Joe Prunty would be promoted to take over from Griffin in the interim until a permanent successor is appointed.

Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix reported on Wednesday in the wake of the news that there “have been steady rumblings for weeks in NBA circles that several Bucks veterans, including Giannis, had lost faith in Griffin”.

“What appeared to be [a] smart hire last spring just never worked out,” he added.

ESPN’s NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski described it as an “agonising decision” for the Bucks, who made the call in a bid to maximise the team’s championship window.

“They were very fond of Adrian Griffin and gave him his first head coaching opportunity this offseason,” he said on ESPN’s ‘NBA Today’.

“But they looked at where this team was, how it was responding under Griffin, although the second-best record right now … they have such a tight championship window with Giannis Antetokounmpo [and] certainly the Damian Lillard trade, which happened after they hired Adrian Griffin as head coach.

“They made a decision to make the change… they’re going to start a search immediately for a new head coach. They want an accomplished, veteran head coach who is available and I’m told Doc Rivers is among the very serious candidates that Milwaukee is going to look at.

“I think Adrian Griffin is going to be a good head coach in the NBA. I think they feel that in Milwaukee also… this is a unique situation where it is win-now, give ourselves the best possible chance to compete with the elite of the league. They didn’t think they had that anymore with Adrian Griffin.”

Former teammate and player under Griffin, Richard Jefferson, described the news as “shocking” but he too echoed the fact that the Bucks didn’t have the time to be patient.

“It’s championship or bust, especially when you get an individual like Dame added to your roster, so that there became difficult,” he said on ‘NBA Today’.

“I don’t think this is an indictment as much on Adrian Griffin’s ability to coach. I think it was more of with this group, with their timetable as a very young, new coach that is what makes it difficult.”

While Milwaukee sits second in the Eastern Conference with a 30-13 record, there were serious doubts over the team’s ability to push fellow contenders Boston and Philadelphia in a best-of-seven series given its suspect defence.

The Bucks rank 22nd in the league in defensive rating and have the toughest remaining schedule in the league according to Tankathon, which further inflates their start to the season.

“The reality is, we talk about this so much on this program, if you want to be a championship team you need to have a championship defence,” two-time WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike said on ‘NBA Today’.

“At least in the top 10. Last year, the Milwaukee Bucks had a championship defence, they were fourth in defence. This year they’re 22nd [in defensive efficiency] and particularly in January they’ve been 27th.

“No matter how much you love your coach, there are certain standards especially when you have Giannis and you put all the chips in the middle of the table to get Dame Lillard. A lot of people have been criticising how they’ve looked and I think that recipe was not necessarily for success for them in this highly-pressured year one with that amazing duo.”