Despite a reported strong friendship between former coach and soon-to-be-inducted Hall of Famer Jason Kidd and star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two had their share of rifts during their time together with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Kidd was fired in late January after the team had reportedly grown tired of his voice, with the results also not helping his case, as the team had dropped out of the top-eight spots in the East.
According to Howard Beck of Bleacher Report, Antetokounmpo and Kidd had a strong relationship, but it was frayed due to Kidd's constant criticism of his star player.
“That relationship was one of the stronger ones Kidd had, although sources say Antetokounmpo, too, grew weary of Kidd's relentless critiques. (Antetokounmpo was also disappointed, per sources, that Kidd revealed a private exchange between them in the wake of his firing.)
“Did I think I lost the locker room? I didn't think I did,” Kidd says. “My style? My voice was only heard when it needed to be heard. I let the other coaches do as much talking as I did, because I knew as a player, if you hear one voice, you can lose the locker room.”
Antetokounmpo didn't know who Kidd, the player, was upon his arrival in Milwaukee. But after looking at a few highlight reels on the web, the two had grown stronger in a mentor-student dynamic that evolved a raw prospect out of Greece into The Greek Freak that he is today.
Yet too much criticism can get to a player, especially when the 6-foot-11 forward had been leading the Bucks in every major statistical category for the past two seasons.
Kidd noted in a post-firing interview that Antetokounmpo got wind of his firing before it took place and called Kidd, saying he would do anything to save his job. Antetokounmpo apparently wasn't fond of that breach of trust, despite his fondness for Kidd.
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