The Milwaukee Bucks have had an up and down season and sit at 26-35. The biggest story for the Bucks is what's happening with Giannis Antetokounmpo. He was almost traded by the NBA trade deadline, but remained with Milwaukee for at least the remainder of the season. Now, the biggest story is that Doc Rivers decided to keep Kyle Kuzma on the bench as a coaching decision.
The Bucks were playing the Celtics, and Kuzma did not play due to a coaching decision. Doc Rivers said the goal for the overall lineup is to try different things to find a rhythm, but he did not directly address benching Kyle Kuzma.
Kuzma addressed The Athletic's Eric Nehm and said that he did not know in advance that it was happening, but he took it seriously and trusted the coaching staff, especially Rivers, given their past success.
“You have to take it seriously,” Kuzma said. "At the end of the day, we trust our coaching staff to make the right decisions on this team or whatever they think can win us games, especially for a guy like Doc. You know, he's in the top 5 all-time in wins, so he knows basketball."
Kuzma's benching did not affect the outcome of the game, as the Celtics defeated the Bucks 108–81, despite Giannis Antetokounmpo returning from injury.
The former Laker was traded from the Washington Wizards to the Bucks midway through the 2024–25 season. In his first full year with the Bucks, the 2020 NBA champion averaged 12.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per contest, while shooting 48.3% from the field and 34.2% from three-point range in 56 games.
The Bucks are currently the 11th seed in the Eastern Conference and face an uphill battle to make the postseason, even a play-in game. They have also lost four games in a row and don't look like they are a playoff-caliber team.
It's been a tough journey for Kuzma, and if he's still part of the Bucks' plans moving forward, he still has another season left on his current contract beyond 2025-26. The $20.3 million Kuzma is owed in 2026-27 is also nearly fully guaranteed.
