Cavs Insider

Cleveland Cavaliers’ Next Opponent Fires Head Coach

In its next two games, Cleveland will be facing a different Milwaukee Bucks coach after they fired first-year head coach Adrian Griffin.
Logan Potosky|
Cleveland Cavaliers’ Next Opponent Fires Head Coach
Cleveland Cavaliers’ Next Opponent Fires Head Coach

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Cleveland CavaliersMilwaukee Bucks

This week, the Cleveland Cavaliers will wrap up a four-game road trip with two games against their Central Division rival Milwaukee Bucks.

However, the Cavaliers will be facing a different coach on the opposing bench.

On Tuesday, Milwaukee announced that it has dismissed head coach Adrian Griffin.

Assistant Joe Prunty will become the team’s interim head coach. According to ESPN Senior NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Bucks are planning on pursuing a few veteran head coaches, including 2008 NBA Champion Head Coach Doc Rivers.

The upcoming games between Cleveland and Milwaukee will have significant implications, as they are currently the fourth and second seeds in the Eastern Conference, respectively.

The Wine and Gold split the first two games of the season between the two teams, falling 119-111 on December 29, and winning 135-95 this past Wednesday.

This situation is similar to a pair that have recently occurred in Cleveland.

The first situation happened during the 2015-16 season. Despite the Cavaliers holding the Eastern Conference’s best record at 30-11 and leading them to the NBA Finals the previous season, head coach David Blatt was fired in just his second season with the team. This was announced on January 22, 2016, just over eight years ago today.

Then, the other occurred during the 2019-20 season. After signing a five-year contract with Cleveland, John Beilein resigned as the team’s head coach just 54 games into his tenure. This was announced nearly four years ago on February 19, 2020. 

Griffin’s time as Milwaukee’s head coach lasted just 43 games, which is tied for the third-shortest head coaching tenure in NBA history.

The Wine and Gold will look to extend the NBA’s longest active winning streak to nine games when they face the Bucks tomorrow night, with tip-off scheduled for 8 p.m.

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Logan Potosky
LOGAN POTOSKY

Logan Potosky is an aspiring play-by-play sports broadcaster who, to date, has called approximately 350+ hours of professional, college, and high school sporting events. He is currently the Play-by-Play Broadcaster for the Lake County Captains, the High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. He graduated from John Carroll University in May of 2023 with a degree in Communication, with a concentration in Digital Media, and a minor in Entrepreneurship.

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