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Doc Rivers will not be the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, ESPN reported Sunday, citing sources.
Rivers left his broadcasting job to return to the NBA as the Bucks coach shortly after Adrian Griffin was fired 43 games into the 2023-24 season. Now Rivers is leaving Milwaukee after a 126-106 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, capping a 32-50 season that ended without an NBA playoff berth.
Rivers led the Bucks to first-round playoff elimination 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 looks on against the New Orleans Pelicans during the second half at Smoothie King Center. (Images by Stephen Lew-Imagn)
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 addresses the media at a news conference during practice prior to the NBA Emirates Cup semifinals at T-Mobile Arena. (Kyle Terada/Image Images)
The NBA trade deadline passed in February without a deal involving Antetokounmpo. The two-time league MVP saw limited action in the 2025-26 season, appearing in a career-low 36 games.
Antetokounmpo suffered a knee hyperextension and a bone bruise during the season. He was later sidelined for a series of games, sparking speculation that the Bucks shut him down even though he was healthy, prompting an NBA investigation into the star forward’s handling.
Antetokounmpo’s frustration boiled over when he insisted he was healthy enough to play despite being sidelined for the 10th straight game when Milwaukee faced the Boston Celtics on April 3.
“I’ve never seen a case where a player says, my caliber of player, that’s like, I say it publicly, I want to play. You know what I’m saying?” he said, via El Atlético. “I don’t think I’ve seen this. So if there needs to be an investigation, great. There should be. I don’t know. There should be. Until we find out something.”
He then said he was “available to play.”
Rivers addressed Antetokounmpo’s comments following the team’s 133-101 loss.
“The hard thing about all of this is that I’m in the middle and I have nothing to do with it,” Rivers said. “The coaches don’t decide any of this. The problem with our league is that the coaches are the ones sitting in front.
“And we have to sit here and respond to these things. I think there are two sides to this, I’ll tell you, but I don’t want to get too involved in it.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo and head coach Doc Rivers of the Milwaukee Bucks talk before the third quarter against the New York Knicks at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on October 28, 2025. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
Rivers added that he didn’t like that the dispute 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 to the franchise’s first championship since 1971.
Rivers led the Celtics to the NBA title in 2008. He was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in 1983. After retiring as a player, Rivers moved 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 leading NBA broadcast team.
