The 6-9 Milwaukee Bucks have as much pressure on them as any team in the NBA this season. With every loss, the chances that superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo demands to be traded seem to increase. Especially with how vocal Giannis has been in recent weeks about winning.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, and New York Knicks are all clearly better than the Bucks at the moment, and every loss decreases the chances that Milwaukee will have home-court advantage in the playoffs against them.
Worse still, they have been scouring the trade market but have seemingly come up dry as far as potential impactful trades. If that doesn't change, then they may be stuck with their roster unless they are forced to make a drastic move, such as trading Giannis.
NBA Rumors: The Bucks may be stuck with their biggest problem, Doc Rivers.
Looking back at the Bucks' recent struggles, the obvious move to help salvage their season would be to potentially fire head coach Doc Rivers. Since taking over for Adrian Griffin, who went 30-13 last season, Rivers is only 25-32, including the playoffs, with them having been bounced in the first round for the second season.
Rivers' Bucks have clearly underperformed but it seems unlikely that he will actually be fired. After all, the Bucks would have fired three coaches in four years, and this type of instability can further alienate Giannis.
There is also a financial aspect with Rivers being among the highest-paid coaches in the NBA. Firing him and replacing him with another coach would likely mean that they would still have to pay Rivers in addition to whoever replaces him.
Then there is the obvious issue that while Rivers is flawed, there's likely not a better coach available who could step in and help to right the ship midseason.
Without being able to replace their coach or make a big move to improve their roster around Giannis and Damian Lillard, they are running out of both time and options. If the Bucks aren't able to turn their season around, then they will be forced to tear down their team.
That could include trading Giannis, Lillard, Bobby Portis Jr., and Brook Lopez. Doing so would allow them to refill their depleted stockpile of draft picks quickly. However, it would mean the end of their most successful run since Lew Alcinder and Oscar Robertson led the Bucks to a championship in 1971. That is what is at stake for Milwaukee if they can't turn their season around.