Bucks Preach Patience After Nuggets Spoil Doc Rivers' Debut

DENVER -- Before Doc Rivers took the sideline for his first game as coach of the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night in Denver, he was already emphasizing the need for patience.

For the first time in his 25-year coaching career, Rivers is taking over a team midseason, a challenge he said "he wouldn't wish on anybody." Meanwhile, the Bucks are adjusting to an entirely new voice in the huddle after first-year coach Adrian Griffin was replaced by Rivers.

"It's going to take a minute," Rivers said prior to Monday's 113-107 loss to the Nuggets. "What I'm trying to do really slowly is put in some of my stuff and simplify some of their stuff.

"One thing you don't want to do and we're so fearful of doing it is paralyzing their brain and now they're thinking it. So it's just going to take a while."

Denver spoiled Rivers' Bucks coaching debut with a loss, dropping him to 1-4 in his career in his first game with a new team, but the Bucks were still encouraged by one of their most inspired defensive efforts of the season.

They held the Nuggets, one of the league's most prolific offenses, to 113 points, forcing two-time MVP Nikola Jokic to take 25 shots to score 25 points -- although he still finished with a triple-double with 16 rebounds and 12 assists. Jamal Murray added 35 points.

But it was an improvement from a Bucks team that ranks 24th in the league in defensive efficiency, prompting Rivers to joke that the "cat was out of the bag" now that the Bucks have proved they can play defense.

Damian Lillard finished with 18 points on 5-of-13 shooting, and Giannis Antetokounmpo put up 29 points and 12 rebounds.