Bill Reiter, CBS Sports NBA Insider

Alrighty, big news out of the NBA. The Milwaukee Bucks have fired their first-year head coach, Adrian Griffin, and there's reports that Doc Rivers could be the next head coach of the Bucks.

You can listen to Bill Reiter, Monday through Friday, and many of these same CBS Sports Radio affiliates from 10 a.m. to noon Eastern, and he also is a great insider for CBS Sports HQ, and Bill is kind enough to join us right now. Bill, we'll get to the Doc Rivers part of this in just a second, but just when it comes to Adrian Griffin, why did this not work in Milwaukee even though the team is 30 and 13 right now? Hey buddy, yeah, I mean it's, it is shocking, not surprising, right? I'm sure you've told your audience that everybody knows the Bucks have an outstanding record. They're the second best team at least by record in the Eastern Conference, but there's been, there's been talking whispers, Zach, around the NBA about the concerns the Bucks have that Adrian Griffin just wasn't up to the task of coaching a team that is a must-compete-for-championships-now organization, going back to when Terry Stock, his top assistant coach, resigned, suddenly resigned, yeah, out of nowhere at the very start of the season, and those rumors have continued, so talking to folks, talking to folks in that Bucks organization, the sense that I get is that that feeling that Adrian Griffin wasn't up to the job, that concern that they had given a rookie head coach more than he was at least for now capable of undertaking, and the real feeling in the front office, the guy that runs operations, John Horst, I think as good as a job, is under a lot of pressure having done what he did to bring in Damian Lillard, they felt like it was worthwhile to panic or to be bold, however you want to read it, and go get somebody else. Yeah, I know it's easy for a lot of us to advocate for a coach to get fired. I thought it was right last year when they moved on from Mike Budenholzer.

Looking back, is that a mistake now in your opinion? Look, I don't think the mistake is, it's a great question, is moving on from Budenholzer, the mistake is in this crop of NBA coaches, kind of like the NFL coaches that are out there now. Go higher either, I mean the guy you should hire is Nick Nurse, ironically the person hired to replace Doc Rivers, who I know we're going to talk about in a second, who's doing a wonderful job in Philly, go hire Monty Williams despite the fact that the Pistons have like negative three losses this year or whatever, go hire Frank Vogel, who is very well respected, if you have expectations to win now. I don't think, I'm with you, I think Budenholzer is a very good coach, I think maybe it was time for a separation, the mistake was not hiring the right person after that decision. And it's also alarming where you lose the confidence of Giannis this early, because I love Giannis, he's one of my favorite players in the sport, it's kind of crazy how quickly reportedly that relationship just did deteriorate with your star player. Yeah that's right, and look Giannis has only had before this guy one coach in his career, so it's harder I think to make an assessment, just talking to folks about this, this is what they've given me, it's harder to make an assessment on what it takes to manage Giannis, whether he's a diva or not, I'm not saying he is, but the assessments we can make on LeBron James are a little easier, he's had a lot of coaches and he has in subtle ways, including a couple nights ago with his current coach, undermined those guys, different guys, time and again. With this it is just hard to know if Giannis needs to manage a certain way or, and I think that exactly is the more likely outcome, Giannis has utterly lost confidence that this head coach is up to the job, and that gave the front office permission to follow their own instincts and move on quickly. Talking to Bill Reiter right now, I'm kind of laughing at this report that it could be Doc Rivers, your reaction if the Bucks hire Doc Rivers? Well I can tell you that I don't write all the time for CBSSports.com because I'm busy, but I'm going to write an open letter to John Horst, who runs the Milwaukee Bucks basketball operations that will say in effect, for the love of all that is holy, your own job and the good people of Wisconsin, do not do it. I think that would be, as you know I think, a colossal errand judgment, and let me just read you Zach very quickly, a rival executive, when the news came out that Doc was in the mix, unasked, sent me the text that said, and the other Eastern Conference contenders breathe easier.

Wow. I think that's a pretty universal view out there, not a hundred percent, but it's certainly widespread. And for a team that had shortcomings in the playoffs last year, I know that Doc won a championship with the Celtics, but with how it's gone recently, it would be crazy, it would make no sense to bring in Doc if the goal is to get the team over the hump this year. I mean look, the stats speak for themselves, there are 13 blown 3-1 series leads in NBA history. Rivers has coached three of them, he is six and ten in game sevens, that is by far the most losses for an NBA coach in history in game sevens.

This dude is 17 and 33 in games where they had a chance to clinch, so when it's a clinch game, it's about 34 percent clip. I could keep going, the point remains the same. Doc Rivers, I just, the history of success is not there to match.

What was a great season, that one season in Boston. The problem, Zach, is, and this is part of the reason you have to figure that the Rivers report makes sense, because they have to know who they're getting. Yeah. They have to know who they're getting. Yeah, now look, Terry Stotts, highly regarded, he would have been the ideal guy, but I can't imagine. Could they bring him back? I mean, I had one executive suggested as, not it's going to happen, but just this is what they should do. It depends on how Stotts parted ways with Horst, the GM, because Stotts is very well respected, right, coach in Portland forever.

He and Damian Lowd have a great relationship. I just don't know, and I haven't been able to find out when he just abruptly left, whether he burned bridges just with Griffin or burned bridges with the whole organization. So let's just say it can't be Stotts, and obviously you don't want it to be Doc Rivers. I know this is a tough question, it's so tough to do this in-season, Bill Reiter, but is there anyone else that you would be like, okay, that would actually be a good move for them to do?

Well, this is the problem. No, I mean, because the guys that I think that you want to go and get are either the rare, excellent coach who has just burned out with his organization or burned out his organization. There were several of those guys last year, and really I think the right move, and Nick Nurse is a great example of this, there are a lot of very well regarded assistants out there that you can go get. I know Adrian Griffin, rookie head coach, didn't work out. It doesn't mean it can't work out with a rookie head coach, it just wasn't this one. So to answer your question, no, there are no great names that are on the table. I'll throw one to you.

Yeah, hit me with it. And now he's never coached as an NBA head coach, don't you gotta at least call Jay Wright? No, I mean like, look, yeah, I understand the Jay Wright love it, but that is a gigantic leap, and whatever you accomplish at the college level, this isn't necessarily fair. Better leap than Doc Rivers though, right? I mean, you're a better leap than Doc Rivers. I'm a better leap than Doc Rivers. Stuart Kovacs, when he's not willing like the multiple ladies of New York City, he's a better, yeah, is a better, I mean like, and look, Jay Wright could work out, I just think that's all, it is, again, this is on the front office in Milwaukee for hiring the wrong guy in Adrian Griffin by their own choice, wrong guy, they just got rid of him. That's a lot to ask of any college coach who doesn't have NBA experience to step into your, I think you need somebody with a ton of street credibility in the NBA.

Last thing I'll ask you, Bill, and this is just one of those good radio questions, I think. Last night, Joel Embiid at 70 points, and he only made one three-pointer. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 62, but the Timberwolves lost.

What's more impressive to you, because both are crazy? Oh, I think, I think Joel Embiid's a lot more impressive, and I think it's a really, really good point. Nothing against Kobe in his 81 or Steph in his 60 burgers or whoever you want to look at. That is a reminder that Joel Embiid does not have to be hot, right, from a shooting perspective to be in the zone, that he can just be physical and dominant with that talent.

So I think it can carry over. Is he going to score 70 points in the playoffs? No, but I think it just shows that he is capable of putting that team on his back, and he got up for that Embiid game. I mean, I want to say nice things about people, so I'll say this about Karl-Anthony Towns. Sixty-two is great. You got to win the basketball game, and so does that basketball team when one of your guys goes off for a 60 burger. Yeah, that's what makes it so impressive that they lost. Like, you have 62 points, and you lose the game.

How do you lose any fat and crunch minutes? He's Bill Ryder, CBS Sports HQ. You can listen to him brighter than you right here on CBS Sports Radio, 10 a.m. to noon Eastern. Bill, thank you. Appreciate it. Thanks, buddy.