'I think he's ready for it': Bucks officially announce Doc Rivers as head coach

Doc Rivers is about to resume his coaching career at a place where his jersey hangs from the rafters.

The Milwaukee Bucks announced Friday night they had hired Rivers to take over for Adrian Griffin, who was fired on Tuesday after only 43 games. Rivers played from 1980-83 at Marquette, which shares a home arena with the Bucks and has retired Rivers' No. 31 college jersey.

"This is a great opportunity to come to a first-class organization with a team that has a talented roster of high-character players," Rivers said in a statement released by the team.

The Bucks made the announcement in the final minute of their 112-100 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Rivers will be introduced at a Saturday news conference.

This move represents a major shift in terms of head coaching experience.

Griffin had never been a head coach before the Bucks hired him last summer, though he had 16 seasons of experience as an assistant. Rivers won an NBA title with the Boston Celtics in 2008, and his background as a head coach extends almost a quarter century.

Rivers owns a 1,097-763 regular-season record and 111-104 playoff mark in 24 seasons with the Orlando Magic (1999-2004), Celtics (2004-13), Los Angeles Clippers (2013-20) and Philadelphia 76ers (2020-23). His 1,097 regular-season wins put him one shy of Larry Brown for eighth most in NBA history.

"Great voice," Portis said. "Someone obviously who's had success in this league, who has respect in this league. Big-name coach. Top-15 coach of all-time. I can go on and on."

Joe Prunty, an assistant on Griffin's staff, had served as interim head coach for the Bucks' last two games.

Taking over a team featuring two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and seven-time All-NBA guard Damian Lillard gives