Former Doc Rivers player refuses to blame him as Bucks' 1-3 start causes NBA fan furor

Some fans are blaming coach Doc Rivers for the Milwaukee Bucks' rough start to the 2024-25 NBA season. However, one of Rivers' former players, Lou Williams, is not ready to hold the coach accountable for the Bucks' 1-3 record after the first four games.

Speaking on Tuesday's episode of "Run It Back" on FanDuel TV, the crew of Williams, Chandler Parsons and Michelle Beadle discussed Milwaukee's loss to the Boston Celtics. Beadle asked the two former NBA players if Rivers was at fault and here was the three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner's answer:

"These issues that the Milwaukee Bucks have had, they predate Doc Rivers. He stepped in to get that job. ... Another coach (Adrian Griffin) got fired because they felt like he wasn't getting the job done even though they were having success with that coach."

Parsons added:

"(Rivers) is not just gonna come in there and sprinkle some magic dust to make them figure it out. That's on the players, and when Damian Lillard's talking about holding each other accountable, it is weird."

The Milwaukee Bucks hired Doc Rivers to take over the team after they fired Adrian Griffin midway through the 2023-24 NBA season. Griffin had the Bucks winning many games with a record of 30-13.

However, the front office felt that they were still lacking something and brought Rivers. Under the one-time NBA champion coach, the Bucks have a losing record of 18-21. They are now sitting in 14th place in the East at 1-3 but it's too early to panic.

Rivers' recent record doesn't look good, especially with Giannis Antetokounmpo questioning the team's identity. On the other hand, Damian Lillard talked about holding himself and Antetokounmpo accountable this season.

"Me and him gotta be able to hold each other accountable," Lillard said, according to Ahn Fire Digital. "And I don't mean yelling at each other all the time, just mean like I gotta be able to say something to you. And you gotta be able to say something to me at all times."

The Bucks defeated the Philadelphia 76ers to get their first win on the season opener. They have now lost three straight against the Chicago Bulls, Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics.

Here are also a few tweets from fans blaming Rivers:

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What's next for Doc Rivers and the Bucks?

What's next for Doc Rivers and the Bucks? (Photo: IMAGN)

Things are not going to get easier for Doc Rivers and the Milwaukee Bucks before the start of the NBA Play-in Tournament on Nov. 12. The Bucks have six games in between, starting on Thursday against the Memphis Grizzlies followed by two straight contests versus the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Milwaukee is also scheduled to face the Utah Jazz, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics. They open the Play-In Tournament at home against the Toronto Raptors. The only "easy" matchups in that span are the Jazz and Raptors, and they have been very competitive to start the campaign.