The Milwaukee Bucks appear to be heading toward a significant decision at the end of the 2025-26 season, and the latest reporting by Marc Stein suggests that decision could involve more than a routine offseason review. Stein reported Sunday that “Doc Rivers and the franchise could be heading for some sort of parting or job restructuring” after what he described as a difficult campaign, with former Memphis Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins already emerging as “a likely prime candidate” if Milwaukee opens the position.
Jenkins is an intriguing name for a reason. Before becoming the head coach in Memphis, he spent the 2018-19 season as an assistant under Mike Budenholzer in Milwaukee, giving him prior ties to the franchise. He was dismissed by the Grizzlies in March 2025 after more than six seasons with the team, leaving him available at a moment when his name is expected to surface prominently in coaching searches.
For the Bucks, this is about more than one coach’s résumé. Rivers is a Hall of Fame coach and was just named to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2026 class. But coaching reputations in the NBA are always judged in the present tense, and Milwaukee’s present has clearly created uncertainty. Stein wrote that Rivers’ upcoming Hall of Fame induction has “helped fuel the notion that he will not be coaching the Bucks” after this season.
