Giannis Antetokounmpo responded after former coach Doc Rivers questioned his basketball IQ, offensive approach and leadership, telling reporters to ask Rivers why he made those comments.
“Oh my God, first of all, he’s not my coach. My coach is Coach Paul,” Antetokounmpo said after Miami’s 114-108 win over Sacramento on Sunday. “But he’s a guy that, he’s a coach that I’ve worked with in the past.”
The two-time MVP said he was surprised by Rivers’ assessment, which came during an appearance on the Bill Simmons podcast.
“Speechless. He made those comments when, today?” Antetokounmpo asked before responding to the reporter’s explanation that they were made a couple of days earlier.
“You gotta go, you have his number, right? You do, I know you do. You gotta go ask him why he thought that, that’s on him, that’s not on me,” Antetokounmpo said.
“I just gotta focus on my team and what I gotta do and how I can be better and how can I help the team.”
He also offered a broader message about handling criticism and personal disagreements.
“Never let, I don’t know, bitterness or pettiness, get in front of your goals and dream,” Antetokounmpo said. “For every athlete out there, never let that, that’s insane.”
He finished by directing the question back toward his former coach: “But you gotta go ask him why he said what he said, not me.”
Rivers had questioned several aspects of Antetokounmpo’s game, describing him as difficult to coach because of his downhill style and tendency to force plays.
“He’s not easy. He plays at this crazy downhill pace. He’s really a difficult guy,” Rivers said. He also claimed Antetokounmpo has “this great passing ability, but he doesn’t have super IQ at the same time.”
The former coach argued that Antetokounmpo needs to improve his execution and understand how his playing style affects teammates.
“You have to learn how to play with Giannis,” Rivers said, pointing to the spacing challenges created by building an offense around an elite scorer who is not a consistent perimeter shooter.
Rivers also said Antetokounmpo is more effective without the ball and described him as a roller, while questioning his current defensive impact.
Antetokounmpo answered the criticism after producing 29 points, 14 rebounds and three assists against Sacramento. He made 14 of 23 shots and added two blocks in Miami’s six-point victory.
The Heat improved to 4-6, while Antetokounmpo’s focus remained on his current team rather than his former coach’s assessment. Miami visits the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.
