With Rivers out, the front office will not change.
The Milwaukee Bucks just wrapped up one of the worst seasons in Giannis Antetokounmpo's career, and yet the man who built this roster is sticking around to try and fix it.
Milwaukee finished 32-50, missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade and watching Doc Rivers get shown the door minutes after the season finale in what was an ugly year from start to finish.
But according to Marc Stein's Substack, general manager Jon Horst isn't going anywhere.
Stein reported that "early indications suggest that Bucks general manager Jon Horst will indeed be the point man for Milwaukee's offseason business."
Horst Built This Roster
That's a tough pill for Bucks fans, mostly because Horst is the one who made the moves that got Milwaukee here.
Last summer, he waived and stretched Damian Lillard's contract after Lillard tore his Achilles in the playoffs, then used the cap space to sign Myles Turner to a four-year, $107 million deal while letting Brook Lopez walk in free agency.
The thinking was that Turner, fresh off an NBA Finals run with Indiana, would slot in as a younger version of Lopez next to Giannis.
None of it worked the way Horst planned, as Turner averaged 11.9 points and 5.3 rebounds while Milwaukee's defense ranked 27th in the league.
Giannis battled a knee injury that held him to a career-low 36 games, though he still put up 27.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists when healthy.
The roster never clicked, and stretching Lillard's deal only saddled the franchise with dead money that will linger for years.
The Contract Protects Him
Stein noted that "there has naturally been speculation about Horst's status given how tumultuous this season has been," but pointed out that Horst recently had his contract extended through 2027-28.
With two years left on that deal, ownership doesn't seem eager to eat even more money after already agreeing to pay Rivers next season despite letting him go.
The biggest sign that Horst is operating like business as usual?
Stein reported that he "has already initiated outreach to representatives of various coaching candidates" to get the search going.
Names like Taylor Jenkins, Darvin Ham, and James Borrego have already surfaced, and Horst appears to be driving the process.
Does He Deserve Another Chance?
Horst has highlights on his resume as a former Executive of the Year who pulled off the Jrue Holiday trade and helped build the 2021 championship roster, but the last three years paint a different picture.
Milwaukee has burned through three coaches since letting Mike Budenholzer go in 2023, the roster bets have gotten riskier without paying off, and the Bucks haven't won a playoff series since 2022.
Now Horst has to find the right coach, convince Giannis to stay, and retool a roster that was among the worst in the East.
Whether he's the right person for the job is fair to question, but Milwaukee's future is still in his hands.