Doc Rivers is not hiding his frustration with the way Milwaukee’s season has been portrayed, and his sharpest criticism is aimed at ESPN insider Shams Charania. Rivers said,
“Shams wrote an article that was so inaccurate. He talked about our locker room thing…. The first thing I thought was ‘where’s Woj? I miss Woj!”
Doc Rivers fires a shot at Shams over the Giannis reports 👀
“Shams wrote an article that was so inaccurate. He talked about our locker room thing…. The first thing I thought was ‘where’s Woj? I miss Woj!”
(Via @RunItBackFDTV) pic.twitter.com/GqoNPd6GDX
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) April 10, 2026
He then challenged the reporting around the Bucks’ discussions involving Giannis Antetokounmpo, saying,
“Not close. That’s the point. If you read all the stuff, and I hate to keep throwing Shams under the bus but that’s what he was upset at. It was no where near that we were about to do anything. For me as a coach it bothered me because I know what was going on. Was there talk? Absolutely”
Doc Rivers says the Bucks were NOT CLOSE on pulling the trigger on a Giannis deal despite Shams reports:
“Not close. That’s the point. If you read all the stuff, and I hate to keep throwing Shams under the bus but that’s what he was upset at. It was no where near that we were… https://t.co/nj0aJgzFqr pic.twitter.com/c2mFUCxKOy
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) April 10, 2026
ESPN had described Milwaukee as coming to terms with the likelihood of a Giannis deal eventually materializing and portrayed the season as one marked by internal strain.
Rivers is not claiming there were never conversations. In fact, his own quote concedes that there was “talk.” What he is disputing is the idea that the Bucks were on the verge of a real breakthrough or that events inside the organization were as definitively characterized as the reporting suggested. That makes this less a denial of all trade chatter than a direct challenge to how far it had progressed and how certain outside accounts made it sound.
The larger backdrop helps explain why Rivers reacted so strongly. The Bucks have been under intense scrutiny not only because of Giannis’ future, but also because the NBA has been investigating the team’s handling of his health status after conflicting public signals from the player and the organization. Antetokounmpo said he was healthy enough to play while the Bucks maintained that he was not ready, and Rivers himself said he was caught in the middle and not directly involved in that decision-making.
So Rivers’ comments appear to come from a coach who believes the outside narrative has gone well beyond the facts as he understands them. Shams’ reporting painted a picture of a franchise bracing for an eventual split and a tense environment worn down by uncertainty. Rivers is countering that the situation was more speculative and less imminent than it was made to sound. That does not erase the tension around Milwaukee. It does, however, sharpen the fight over who gets to define what was really happening behind the scenes.
