Adrian Griffin joins club of coaches who won and still got fired

The second-best record in the NBA this season couldn’t save Adrian Griffin from getting the pink slip from the Milwaukee Bucks. Griffin, a first-year coach, was 30-13 with the Bucks before being fired Tuesday, sources told Adrian Wojnarowski. The Bucks plan on looking at a small pool of veteran head coaches to replace him.

Griffin joins a list of other coaches across all sports this millennium who weren’t retained despite a winning record or an otherwise successful season. Here, we take a look at how things worked out for other notable coaches who shared the same fate as Griffin.

NBA

Dwane Casey, Toronto Raptors (2017-18 season)

Casey holds the Raptors’ franchise record for wins with 320, and took them to the playoffs for five straight seasons. He never made it past the conference finals, however, and was fired after a conference semifinals exit against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Regardless, he was named NBA Coach of the Year, and now works in the Detroit Pistons front office.

David Blatt, Cleveland Cavaliers (2015-16 season)

Winning the Eastern Conference championship in your first season, followed by a 30-11 start the next year usually spells job security. Not for Blatt, whose firing by the Cavs despite his 83-40 overall mark as coach drew outrage among his NBA peers. Blatt, who made his name by becoming one of the most successful American coaches in European hoops history, was canned largely because of what was reported as growing turmoil and animosity with players — especially with the team’s stars — behind the scenes.

Byron Scott, New Jersey Nets (2003-04 season)

Led the Nets, who had one of the NBA’s worst records during the 2000-01 season, to back-to-back NBA Finals appearances for the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons. Much of that success coincided with the arrival of all-star point guard Jason Kidd. It was also Kidd’s rocky relationship with Scott that played a role in the midseason firing.

Avery Johnson, Dallas Mavericks (2007-08 season)

Johnson was fired by the Mavericks after the 2007-08 season after leading them to three 50-win campaigns. Johnson guided the Mavericks to the NBA Finals (2006) for the first time and to a club-record 67 wins the following season. But there were also some serious lows during his time with the Mavs — blowing a 2-0 lead in those Finals, getting dumped in the first round of the playoffs after that 67-win season and getting knocked out in the first round again before his dismissal.

Mike Brown, Cleveland Cavaliers (2009-10 season)

Brown, who was named NBA Coach of the Year in 2009, won more than 60 regular-season games in 2009 and 2010. But the bottom line for the Cavs: Brown couldn’t win the big one. Despite having LeBron James on the roster, the Cavs failed to win the Eastern Conference in both of those seasons. The 2010 campaign ended in the second round of the playoffs after the Cavs were routed at home by a combined 50 points in the final two games of the series by Boston. Brown, who also led Cleveland to the NBA Finals in 2007, was fired less than two weeks after falling to the Celtics. He finished with a 272-138 mark in five seasons with the Cavs.

Mark Jackson, Golden State Warriors (2013-14 season)

Jackson was fired by the Warriors after taking them from 23 wins to 51 with two playoff appearances in three seasons. Jackson helped turn a perennially losing franchise into a consistent winner, but his boisterous personality did not always play well with Warriors management.

NFL

Tony Dungy, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2001)

Dungy was fired after a 9-7 season in 2001, one that included the formerly dismal Bucs’ fourth playoff appearance in five years under the coach. The Bucs’ problems on offense — they never finished higher than 21st on that side of the ball under Dungy or found a true separator at quarterback — were viewed as a major reason for his undoing.

Marty Schottenheimer, San Diego Chargers (2006)

Schottenheimer was fired from the Chargers after going an NFL-best 14-2 in the 2006 season. The Chargers were thought by many to be Super Bowl-caliber but they lost at home in the divisional round to the Patriots. Team president Dean Spanos cited a “dysfunctional situation” between the coach and general manager A.J. Smith. Schottenheimer was 47-33 in five seasons with the Chargers.

Mike Mularkey, Tennessee Titans (2017)

Mularkey was fired after the Titans ended an eight-year postseason drought and won a playoff game for the first time since 2003. Mularkey went 20-21 in parts of three seasons with the Titans and guided Tennessee to back-to-back 9-7 records in his two years as the team’s full-time coach. But Mularkey and the Titans “couldn’t come to an agreement over the future.” Mularkey was hired when Ruston Webster was the Titans GM but fired when Jon Robinson was GM.

Lovie Smith, Chicago Bears (2012)

Smith was fired by the Bears after a 10-6 season and an 81-63 record (with a Super Bowl appearance) in nine years. Smith was particularly criticized for Chicago’s struggles on offense. Despite having a Pro Bowl receiver in Brandon Marshall and solid players in quarterback Jay Cutler and running back Matt Forte, the Bears ranked 28th in total offense. Another big issue was the Bears’ poor finishes under Smith. During his tenure, the Bears were 17-19 in December.

MLB

John Farrell, Boston Red Sox (2017)

Farrell was fired after leading the Red Sox to the first back-to-back division titles in franchise history but also consecutive first-round playoff knockouts. Despite another first-place American League East finish, the front office determined the team needed a new voice in the clubhouse and a fresh public face.

Dusty Baker, Washington Nationals (2017)

Baker’s contract wasn’t extended following two years, two NL East titles (95 wins and 97 wins) and two playoff appearances — but no playoff series wins. It was a case of World Series or bust, and while Baker had the respect of the organization, the Nats decided to go in a different direction in hopes of securing that elusive title.

Grady Little, Boston Red Sox (2003)

Red Sox Nation could taste it. Their team had Pedro Martinez, perhaps baseball’s most dominating pitcher, cruising into the eighth inning of Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS against the rival Yankees, leading 5-2. The World Series was oh, so close. But in the eighth, the Yankees rallied for three straight hits and a run against a suddenly fading Martinez, who was up to 118 pitches thrown. Little made his way to the Yankee Stadium mound but, in what could be the most second-guessed move in franchise history next to selling the Bambino to the Yankees, the manager didn’t pull Pedro. Jorge Posada followed with a tying two-run double, and the Yankees won it in the 11th on Aaron Boone’s blast. Less than two weeks later, Little was fired after two seasons with the Red Sox. He led them to a 188-136 record.

Ned Yost, Milwaukee Brewers (2008)

Ryan Braun was raking, CC Sabathia consistently had Cy Young stuff, and the Brewers appeared to be a lock for the NL playoffs. But in September, the Brewers, who had a 5 ½-game wild-card lead, hit a massive bump, losing seven of eight, and fell into a tie with the Phillies. Perhaps going into panic mode — Milwaukee hadn’t made it to the postseason in 26 years, after all — the Brewers pink-slipped manager Ned Yost with 12 games left in the season. It marked the first time in major league history — except for the strike-split 1981 season — that a manager was fired in August or later with his team in playoff position, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

NHL

Alain Vigneault, Vancouver Canucks (2012-13 season)

Vigneault was fired by the Canucks after the 2012-13 season when they won their division. Vigneault led the club to six Northwest Division titles, two Presidents’ Trophy titles and an appearance in the 2011 Stanley Cup Final. But after being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in 2012, the final straw was being swept by the Sharks in the first round in 2013. Vigneault had a 313-170-57 record during seven seasons in Vancouver, and a 33-32 record in the playoffs.

Bruce Boudreau, Washington Capitals (2010-11 season)