Bucks fire rookie coach Griffin after 43 games
The Milwaukee Bucks fired first-year head coach Adrian Griffin, the team announced Tuesday.
Assistant coach Joe Prunty will take over on an interim basis. Prunty also took charge of the Bucks temporarily when the club dismissed Jason Kidd midway through the 2017-18 campaign.
"This was a difficult decision to make during the season," Bucks general manager Jon Horst said in a statement. "We are working immediately toward hiring our next head coach. We thank coach Griffin for his hard work and contributions to the team."
Milwaukee hired Griffin this past summer to succeed Mike Budenholzer. The 49-year-old guided the club to a 30-13 mark.
Griffin's record is the best from a coach fired midseason since the Cleveland Cavaliers dismissed David Blatt during the 2015-16 campaign despite the team's 30-11 mark.
While the Bucks rank second in offensive efficiency, they regressed dramatically on the opposite end, dropping to 22nd in defensive efficiency.
Doc Rivers has emerged as a serious candidate to become the Bucks' next bench boss, sources told The Athletic's Shams Charania. The longtime head coach is currently working as a color commentator for ESPN.
The Philadelphia 76ers let Rivers go in the offseason following a second-round exit in last year's playoffs. The former NBA Coach of the Year sits ninth on the all-time wins list. He guided the Boston Celtics to a championship in 2008.
Rivers is among the small pool of accomplished and experienced options the Bucks are planning to quickly pursue, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports.