Doc Rivers slams his own selection for NBA All-Star Game as ‘ridiculously bad’ as Bucks head coach promises to give predecessor Adrian Griffin ‘money and a ring’ after replacing him last week
- Celtics’ Joe Mazzulla was ineligible to coach the East team as he did in 2023
- Since the Bucks have the second-best record, Rivers got the honor
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Bucks head coach Doc Rivers has criticized his own selection for the upcoming NBA All-Star Game, while vowing to give Milwaukee predecessor Adrian Griffin his bonus and centerpiece ring.
Rivers has been named coach of the Eastern Conference team at this year’s All-Star event, despite only replacing Griffin in Milwaukee last weekend.
The honor typically goes to the coach of the winning team in each conference, but Joe Mazzulla of the East-leading Boston Celtics was ineligible because he coached last year.
The Bucks, meanwhile, posted the conference’s second-best record after defeating the Dallas Mavericks 129-117 on Saturday for Rivers’ first win as head coach.
But after just three games in charge, the 62-year-old has branded the decision to call him up for the prestigious annual NBA match as ‘ridiculously bad’.
Bucks coach Doc Rivers has criticized his own selection for the upcoming NBA All-Star Game
Rivers says he will give “money and a ring” to Milwaukee pastor Adrian Griffin
“That’s ridiculously bad, it really is,” he said on Saturday evening. “Well, Adrian’s going to get some money, that’s for sure. And a ring.
‘It’s one of those quirky things, I think there should be a rule somehow that someone else does it but me.
‘Maybe I’ll send my staff and go on holiday. I’m going to pass that on to Adam Silver. Adam is a good man, I think he will understand.’
Griffin was controversially fired by the Bucks last month despite his 30-13 record in Milwaukee, amid reports suggesting his players had lost confidence in him behind closed doors.
“I appreciate the opportunity the Bucks gave me,” Griffin said after his dismissal. ‘You can’t control everything.
“I feel good about the work we’ve done. I appreciate my coaching staff for all their hard work.”
The NBA All-Star Game takes place on Sunday, February 18 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, featuring LeBron James and Rivers’ Bucks sensation Giannis Antetokounmpo.