Doc Rivers: Bucks not feeling the need to ‘blow it all up’

Doc Rivers is not panicking. Not even after a loss like that.

The Bucks coach made it clear Wednesday that Milwaukee is not about to overhaul everything following a 45-point blowout loss to Brooklyn, a defeat that matched the largest margin in Nets franchise history.

The Bucks have not played since the 127-82 loss Sunday and sit at 11-16, still searching for consistency and still without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has missed the past two weeks with a right calf strain.

“We like our team,” Rivers said after practice, via the AP. “I really like this team. We’re not playing well for a lot of reasons. You don’t recreate the wheel. Teams that do that fail. I’ve been around long enough to know that.”

Milwaukee has won just seven of its last 22 games after opening the season 4-1. The loss in Brooklyn was hard to sit with, and players admitted as much.

“It was embarrassing,” guard Ryan Rollins said.

The silver lining is practice time. Back-to-back days on the floor gave the Bucks a rare chance to regroup, refocus and clean things up. But Rivers stressed that does not mean sweeping changes.

“We want to tweak things,” he said. “But we like what we run. This is not a ‘blow it all up’ situation.”

The slow start has fueled outside speculation about Antetokounmpo’s future, though Rivers has pushed back on reports suggesting internal discussions about a potential trade. Milwaukee is 2-8 without Giannis this season, after earlier injuries kept him sidelined.

There have been highs, including wins over Boston and Golden State. There have also been head-scratchers against teams well below .500.

Now the Bucks return Thursday against Toronto. The message inside the locker room is simple. Execute better. Play with energy. And stop making things harder than they already are.

“We have to perform,” Myles Turner said. “There’s no time for excuses.”