Doc Rivers and the Milwaukee Bucks pulled away for a 113-99 win over the tanking Utah Jazz on March 7 at Fiserv Forum, grinding out an uneven but much-needed result that snapped Milwaukee’s four-game losing streak.
The Bucks head coach also shared what he observed from Cam Thomas that led to the guard sitting out the second half.
Doc Rivers, on the general decisions behind his rotation choices: https://t.co/hAUsiohBil pic.twitter.com/uqOH5qcP3I
— Eric Nehm (@eric_nehm) March 8, 2026
“Tonight wasn’t the night. And we got a lot of guys that can play. Gary Trent Jr. played terrific in the first half for us. We haven’t played him in a while. When you got a lot of guys that are close to about the same, you gotta pick people and you have to make your choices and tonight, we went with Pete in the second half,” the Bucks head coach commented via The Athletic’s Eric Nehm.
Across his first six appearances with the Milwaukee Bucks, Cam Thomas put up 16.2 points per game while taking about 12 shots in 20.8 minutes. He knocked down 48.6% of his field goal attempts, though he connected on only 28% from three-point range.
Doc Rivers’ usage of Cam Thomas with the Bucks
Mar 1, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Milwaukee Bucks Head Coach Doc Rivers gestures to his team against the Chicago Bulls during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images
In the five games leading up to the matchup with the Utah Jazz, including three played without Giannis Antetokounmpo, his workload and production dropped. During that stretch, Thomas took 7.6 shots in 16 minutes per game and averaged 8.4 points while converting just 28.9% from the field and 23.1% of his attempts from beyond the arc.
Thomas finished with three points on a single three pointer and missed both of his free throw attempts, while the Milwaukee Bucks were outscored by eight during his minutes on the floor.
Mar 7, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Utah Jazz guard Elijah Harkless (16) drives against Milwaukee Bucks guard Cam Thomas (24) in the first half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images
Doc Rivers also outlined the reasoning behind the rotation decisions he made during the game.
“If you’re playing well, you play. And defensively, you have to be good as well. And if not, you don’t play. I don’t think anyone has a rite of passage, you know what I mean? And we told our guys, after that Chicago loss, we told them. We’re going to sit guys. We’re gonna move guys and whoever plays – that doesn’t mean they play well – but if you play right, you’re gonna play.”
Thomas will get another chance to make his case when the Milwaukee Bucks host the Orlando Magic on Sunday, March 8, with Orlando currently sitting ahead of Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference play in standings.