Rivers' start to coaching the Bucks can be described as exciting, because it is full of topicality.
The team lost five of its first six games since Rivers took over, and had a record of just 3-7 before All-Star Weekend. There were also some embarrassing moments.
For example, without Jimmy Butler, the Bucks lost by 26 points. After losing to a group of Grizzlies players before the All-Star break that you've probably never heard of, Rivers blamed the players' minds for having gone on vacation to Capo early.
However, there are also some positive changes behind the scenes. After All-Star Weekend, the Bucks' performance improved significantly, snapping a six-game winning streak ahead of the March 6 game against the Warriors.
Here's how they got started on track under Rivers:
The Bucks' defense has improved dramatically
Prior to Rivers' arrival, the Bucks' defense had obvious problems. They look disorganized on the defensive end, and ball-handler breakouts are always a big hole for them.
Since the coach substitution, their defensive efficiency has risen from 19th to 4th, and the holes have been plugged. The two main areas of improvement are switching defense and basket scoring.
Rivers has been in charge for 24 years, and his team has been known for its excellent transition defense. But it's a stylistic choice — and it makes them one of the worst teams in offensive rebounding. He believes in giving up easy second chances and prioritizing everyone to get back on the defensive.
This trend is immediately evident in the Bucks. Under Rivers, they went from being an under-average offensive rebounding team to being the second-to-last in the league. However, their conversion defense has improved dramatically. Under Adrian Griffin, teams facing the Bucks have the highest rate of points scored on the fast break in the league. And under Rivers, they are the fourth-best team in the league in this regard.
Milwaukee also threw themselves into the penalty area defense, dropping from the league's fifth-best place in allowing opponents to score in the box to the league's lowest.
Stats aside, we can also intuitively feel that the Bucks are more tacit on the defensive end. They switch more neatly, communicate more fluently, and help each other when teammates get into a bad position. They have even used some zone defenses occasionally lately and played a role in Monday's win over the Clippers.
One of Rivers' strengths as a communicator is his articulation.
As The Athletic's Eric Nem explained on the NBA podcast, Rivers set clear roles for each player during a lengthy first training session during the team's trip to Minnesota.
At the University of Minnesota, before the first practice, Doc Rivers communicates player by player, 'Okay, that's what we expect from you. It's about winning later, and we need you to do it. Focus on these aspects. ’”
There was a problem on the offensive end
The biggest problem at the moment is that Milwaukee's offense has gotten much worse under Rivers. Prior to his arrival, they were the second-best offensive team in the league, and under his coaching, the offensive efficiency rankings dropped to 15th.
Part of the reason is staffing. Chris Middleton has only played 8 minutes since Feb. 4, but he's still an integral part of the team. With the exception of Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, the rest of the Bucks players have little ability to break through the basket.
The individual abilities of these two stars keep the Bucks' offense at an acceptable level. Antetokounmpo should be considered for MVP this year. Lillard was also doing well, but his scoring dropped dramatically and his shooting percentage went from 423% down to 347 percent, nowhere near where he was when he was in Portland.
Rivers prioritized integrating Lillard into the team, bringing in more of his Portland tactics. Lillard said the change "helped a lot."
The Bucks were successful when Lillard and Antetokounmpo covered each other, although Antetokounmpo still didn't seem quite comfortable with the role. The chemistry between Lillard and Brook Lopez has also improved, with the latter often setting up cover for Lillard near the free-throw line, creating plenty of space for him to break down the slopes.
The Bucks also tried to change the angle of the screen at the last second, making it harder for the big man who defended Lillard's moves to deal with.
These changes are very much in line with the team's ability to experiment with new tactics at this stage, but they have not yet fully exploited the team's talent to its fullest potential.
While the team is winning while trying new tactics, they don't have much time to fix everything. This team is now under tremendous pressure to win the title. Lillard is 33 years old and has seen a noticeable dip in form. Even more worrying is Middleton's precipitous decline. He's on a three-year, $93 million contract extension that expires at age 34, but he now looks like he was the same as when the team won the championship in 2021.
The Bucks have been using their coach as an excuse for a while, and under Rivers, the team looks to be getting better, but in the end, talent is the difference between victory and defeat, and Antetokounmpo has done his part, and the hopes of winning the championship this year will be pinned on other players.