Former Celtics Star Reveals Who’s To Blame For Bucks’ Sudden Downfall

The Boston Celtics, to the surprise of many, have remained one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference so far in the 2025-26 campaign. Things haven’t gone as smoothly for other teams across the league, though, and one team that appears to be on the verge of falling apart is the Milwaukee Bucks.

This was expected to be a big season for the Bucks, as they have attempted to convince Giannis Antetokounmpo that they continue to build championship-contending teams around him. With just an 18-27 record, though, reports have emerged on Wednesday indicating that Milwaukee will begin exploring potential trades for Antetokounmpo.

It wasn’t long ago that the Bucks were right alongside the C’s as one of the top teams in the East. If you ask former Boston star Jae Crowder, who also used to play for Milwaukee, he thinks the team’s decision to replace head coach Adrian Griffin with Doc Rivers midway through the 2023-24 campaign is why things have spiraled out of control for them.

“WE WERE 30-13 BTW. TO BRING IN DOC. THIS IS WHAT STARTED THE AVALANCHE,” Crowder said in a post on X in response to an old post revealing the news of Griffin’s firing.

Crowder was a part of the Bucks’ squad at this time, and as noted in his post, the team was playing pretty well, as it had a 30-13 record. That didn’t stop them from swapping Griffin with Rivers, and ever since then, Milwaukee has gradually regressed.

While Rivers alone likely cannot be solely blamed for the Bucks’ collapse, there’s no denying that things have gone pretty poorly during his time in charge. Now, he’s set to be on the move, and if he gets dealt to another team in the East, it could have big repercussions for the Celtics.