Doc Rivers Says He Was Contacted by Multiple NBA Teams Before Taking Bucks HC Job

The Milwaukee Bucks weren't the only team that had interest in hiring Doc Rivers as their head coach.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Rivers said he was contacted by multiple teams about potentially coaching this season, but he wanted to wait for the right opportunity before jumping back in.

Rivers was officially named Milwaukee's head coach on Friday, three days after Adrian Griffin was fired by the team.

Rivers became available on May 16 when he was fired by the Philadelphia 76ers after their playoff loss to the Boston Celtics. He had been with the Sixers for three seasons.

Per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Rivers was one of four finalists for the Phoenix Suns job before they eventually settled on Frank Vogel.

After Vogel got the job, ESPN's Brian Windhorst said Rivers was "seriously considered" by the Suns because they wanted someone with experience who would be able to navigate a situation with a star-heavy roster.

The only other teams that had openings during the summer were the Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors. The Bucks and Washington Wizards both made in-season coaching changes this week.

Even though Milwaukee wasn't struggling on the surface with a 30-13 record at the time of Griffin's firing, problems were evident from the way the offense with Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo seemed to lack a clear plan and the defense was hovering near the bottom of the league.

Lillard is still averaging 25.3 points per game, but he's having one of the least efficient shooting seasons of his career with a 42.2 percent field-goal percentage (34.3 percent from three-point range).

Rivers has the tall task of putting all of the pieces in place to make the Bucks look like the title contender that their record and talent on paper suggests they should be. He's had his own history of playoff struggles, including no appearances in the conference finals since the 2011-12 season.

The Bucks are expected to have Rivers on the sideline for the first time Monday night against the Denver Nuggets.