The Milwaukee Bucks are reportedly hiring former Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins as the organization’s new head coach, replacing Doc Rivers, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania and Ramona Shelburne.
Jenkins returns to the Bucks, where he worked as an assistant from 2018-2019. Jenkins reportedly met with the team’s front office last week in Memphis and this week in Milwaukee before getting the job, per multiple reports.
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Rivers stepped down as the Bucks’ head coach last week after a disappointing 2025-26 season, saying this week that he “felt like it was time.”
Jenkins was fired by Memphis last year in a stunning move, with the team dismissing him with nine games left in the regular season. Jenkins led the Grizzlies to a 250-214 overall record during his six seasons at the helm, and led them to the playoffs in four of those years — including the year that he was fired.
Jenkins will be joining a Bucks team with a lot of uncertainty heading into the offseason. Milwaukee ended the season 32-50, just out of the playoffs and with a dismal vibe in the locker room. And with Rivers gone, star Giannis Antetokounmpo might be next, with the 31-year-old center dropping hints about possible trade destinations after reportedly asking for a trade multiple times this season.
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With or without Antetokounmpo, Jenkins will have a lot of roster rebuilding to do in order to make the Bucks a contender going forward. Milwaukee has few big producers on the roster right now: With players like Ryan Rollins, Bobby Portis Jr. and Kyle Kuzma leading the team in points, the Bucks ended the regular season 29th (out of 30 teams) in points per game.