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One of Giannis Antetokounmpo's favorite assistant coaches is leaving the Milwaukee Bucks, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Josh Oppenheimer is heading back to college.
“ESPN Sources: Former Milwaukee Bucks assistant Josh Oppenheimer is joining Porter Moser’s staff at Oklahoma,” Wojnarowski posted to his X, formerly Twitter. “Oppenheimer — who had a close working relationship with Giannis Antetokounmpo — will take on a significant role in player development and offensive strategy.”
Oppenheimer's first coaching experiences spanned over a decade at the collegiate level, splitting his first four seasons with Duquesne basketball and Delaware basketball as an assistant. Then, he headed to Kent State before spending the past eleven years in the NBA.
He spent most of his 11 years with the Bucks but made stops with the Houston Rockets in 2016-17, and the Brooklyn Nets' G League affiliate, Long Island Nets in 2017-18. Oppenheimer was retained by Bucks' former head coach Adrian Griffin, who was dismissed from his duties mid-season for Doc Rivers.
Former Sixth Man Lou Williams endorses Doc Rivers
Doc Rivers took over as Bucks head coach in late January. But he couldn't steer Milwaukee beyond their first-round series matchup against Indiana Pacers. All-Star Tyrese Haliburton eliminated Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard, and the Bucks in six games.
Many believe this could be one of Rivers' last chances to earn a second championship as a head coach. After 20+ years of experience, which includes winning one championship with the Boston Celtics in 2008, 2024-25 will be his first full season with the Bucks. And as the pressure for Milwaukee to dethrone the 2024 champion Celtics rises, all eyes will be focused on how Rivers approaches the upcoming season.
One of his former players is a retired sixth-man specialist Lou Williams, who spent four years under Doc's tutelage with the Los Angeles Clippers. He says Rivers, not only convinced him to sign with the Clippers during his playing days but gave him the best years of his career, via Athlon Sports.
“I love Doc. It's a gray area with Doc. Either guys really love him, or they've got the worst s*** in the world to say about Doc. That wasn't my experience,” Williams said. “There's a handful of guys that really don't rock with Doc. I have to tell you, that wasn't my experience man. When I got here, I thought my career was done, so I wasn't excited to be a Clipper. Doc reassured me. That ended up being the best run of my career. That made people appreciate everything that I put into it, and I give Doc a lot of credit for that.”
Williams won three Sixth Man of the Year awards (2015, 2018, 2019), two with Doc and the Clippers, tying former Clipper Jamal Crawford for the most in NBA history.
