{"id":136943,"date":"2025-04-30T07:20:12","date_gmt":"2025-04-30T11:20:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=136943"},"modified":"2025-04-30T07:20:12","modified_gmt":"2025-04-30T11:20:12","slug":"bucks-doc-rivers-made-rare-lineup-change-but-it-didnt-matter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/04\/30\/bucks-doc-rivers-made-rare-lineup-change-but-it-didnt-matter\/","title":{"rendered":"Bucks’ Doc Rivers Made Rare Lineup Change, But It Didn’t Matter"},"content":{"rendered":"

Down 2-0 and staring at another early playoff exit, the Milwaukee Bucks<\/a> needed a jolt. Bucks Head coach Doc Rivers delivered one in Game 3 by shaking up his lineup\u2014a rare move for a coach known more for consistency than flexibility. Rivers inserted Gary Trent Jr.<\/a> into the starting lineup, hoping to challenge Tyrese Haliburton<\/a> on both ends of the floor.<\/p>\n

Bucks’ Doc Rivers Made Rare Lineup Change, But It Didn’t Matter<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It worked, at least temporarily. The Bucks stormed to a 117-101 win, with Trent exploding for 37 points and hitting nine threes. His performance, alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo\u2019s<\/a> 37-point night, fueled optimism. This Bucks lineup by Doc Rivers showed life. For a brief moment, it seemed the series had turned.<\/p>\n

The Hope Quickly Vanished<\/h3>\n

That Game 3 win proved to be a mirage. Despite the bold changes, the Bucks couldn\u2019t sustain their momentum. The Indiana Pacers<\/a> quickly adjusted and closed the series in five games. Once again, Milwaukee found itself eliminated in the first round, this time with even fewer excuses.<\/p>\n

The lineup change\u2014uncharacteristic for Rivers\u2014offered a glimmer of tactical evolution. It also confirmed the perception that the Bucks lineup needed serious shaking up by Doc Rivers. But one successful adjustment couldn’t mask deeper problems.<\/p>\n

The Doc Rivers Lineup Change That Gave the Bucks False Promise<\/h3>\n

Inserting Trent over Taurean Prince<\/a> was a notable shift. Prince had started 73 games that season. Rivers also reduced minutes for veterans like Brook Lopez<\/a> and Kyle Kuzma<\/a> while giving more run to Bobby Portis<\/a> and AJ Green.<\/a> Green hit four of his eight three-point attempts, while Portis brought needed energy.<\/p>\n

Still, the Bucks\u2019 offensive rhythm remained inconsistent. Their Game 3 third-quarter burst\u2014outscoring Indiana by 21\u2014looked more like a fluke than a blueprint. The lineup that seemed promising only a game earlier failed to replicate its success when it mattered most.<\/p>\n

Rivers\u2019 Reputation Takes Another Hit<\/h3>\n

Rivers\u2019 reputation for playoff disappointment grows louder. His 3-8 playoff record with the Bucks now looms large. Critics like Rasheed Wallace<\/a> had long questioned Rivers\u2019 ability to adjust under pressure. Wallace, who played under Rivers in Boston, accused him of relying too heavily on assistant coaches like Tom Thibodeau and Kevin Eastman during the Celtics\u2019 championship run.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe doesn\u2019t make adjustments,\u201d Wallace said<\/a>. Game 3 momentarily proved him wrong. But games four and five reinforced the long-standing critique.<\/p>\n

The Bucks collapsed when Indiana recalibrated. Rivers didn\u2019t respond effectively. The adjustments that once gave them hope didn\u2019t evolve further. It felt like Rivers had already played his one card. A recent players poll<\/a> conducted by the Athletic had Rivers voted as the third-worst coach in the league. That’s a pretty damning report.<\/p>\n

What Happens Next?<\/h3>\n

The playoff exit continues a troubling trend. Milwaukee has now suffered three straight first-round eliminations. Damian Lillard\u2019s<\/a> Achilles injury<\/a> only adds to the gloom. Giannis gave everything, but it wasn’t enough. Rivers, meanwhile, may be out of answers\u2014and out of time.<\/p>\n

General Manager Jon Horst just signed<\/a> a multi-year extension. That move suggests the front office isn\u2019t going anywhere. If someone pays the price for another postseason failure, it likely won\u2019t be Horst. It will be Rivers.<\/p>\n

The Doc Rivers lineup experiment in Game 3 showed that change was possible. But it came too late, and it wasn\u2019t enough. In the end, the Bucks are once again left watching the second round from home. The NBA is ruthless. Adjust too late, and your season ends early. For Doc Rivers, the consequences could be even greater.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Down 2-0 and staring at another early playoff exit, the Milwaukee Bucks needed a jolt. Bucks Head coach Doc Rivers delivered one in Game 3 by shaking up his lineup\u2014a rare move for a coach known more for consistency than flexibility. Rivers inserted Gary Trent Jr. into the starting lineup, hoping to challenge Tyrese Haliburton […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5018,"featured_media":137007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1608,15],"tags":[50041,49366,1255,233,187,190,1623,306,49207,1128,1437,1172,1383],"class_list":["post-136943","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-basketball","category-bucks","tag-2025-nba-playoffs","tag-aj-green","tag-bobby-portis","tag-brook-lopez","tag-damian-lillard","tag-doc-rivers","tag-gary-trent-jr","tag-giannis-antetokounmpo","tag-jon-horst","tag-kyle-kuzma","tag-nba-starting-lineups","tag-rasheed-wallace","tag-taurean-prince"],"modified_by":"Frederick Okocha","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136943","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5018"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136943"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136943\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":137008,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136943\/revisions\/137008"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/137007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}