Inside the tension and struggles that led to Adrian Griffin's firing in Milwaukee - ESPN

FOR THE PAST 15 years, there was little reason to pay much attention to the name of the wheaten terrier owned by Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst and his family. Griffin Bear Horst joined the family back when Horst and his wife, Mia, were living in a modest two-bedroom condominium in the St. Francis neighborhood of Milwaukee. They had no kids, and Horst was just starting out in the Bucks' front office as the director of basketball operations. But they had big dreams for their family and careers, and the dog was just the beginning.

But «Griff» wasn't his original name.

«Our dog's name was Otis — like the elevator company — for, like, a day,» Horst said last fall. «But it didn't stick. We tried it, but didn't like it.»

The next day, the story goes, Horst ran into first-year Bucks assistant coach Adrian Griffin in the same elevator that had inspired the first name. He'd always liked Griffin as a player, and the two had developed a good relationship since he'd moved to Scott Skiles' bench. Plus, they were basically neighbors in the condo complex.

«So I'm on the elevator with him,» Horst explained. «And I'm thinking, 'Not Otis… Griff! That's a great name.»

This time, the name stuck. Although it wasn't until Horst hired the real Griffin to be the Bucks' head coach last June that he told him about his namesake.

«I loved it,» Griffin said, back when his future with the team seemed limitless. After years of interviewing for head-coaching jobs, he'd finally landed one of the best jobs in the league: coaching two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and a roster ready-made for championship contention. Three months later, the team acquired seven-time All Star Damian Lillard in a trade just days before training camp.

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