Adrian Griffin has officially been named as the next head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.

“Adrian is a widely-respected coach and former player, who brings great leadership and experience to our team,” general manager Jon Horst said in a release sent out Monday afternoon. “His championship-level coaching pedigree, character, basketball acumen and ability to connect with and develop players make him the ideal choice to lead our team. He has earned this opportunity.”

"My job is to prepare them to win."

Let's get to work, Coach Griffin!! pic.twitter.com/0jIcdpx2Om

— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) June 5, 2023

Griffin served under Nick Nurse for the last five seasons in Toronto but has been an assistant in the league since 2008. That was the year he got his start in Milwaukee with Scott Skiles. The 48-year-old served stints in Chicago and Orlando before joining the Raptors in 2018. There, he was on the bench for Toronto’s first NBA title in 2019 with Kawhi Leonard as the headliner. Leonard would leave in free agency that offseason, but Toronto finished with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and went to the conference semifinals.

“I’m incredibly honored and grateful to Wes, Jamie, Dee, Jimmy and Jon to be named the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks,” Griffin said. “The Bucks are a championship organization and I’m thrilled to work with an established roster of high character and talented players. I’m excited to be back in Milwaukee and I can’t wait to get started.”

An NBA veteran that played for five teams over nine years, Griffin’s work as an assistant also included stops in Chicago, Orlando and Oklahoma City. The Kansas native had been mentioned for several other head coaching vacancies this offseason.

“Adrian is well-regarded throughout the NBA, and we believe that his vast experience working under and playing for successful head coaches makes him the right person to guide our team in competing for championships,” said Bucks co-owners Wes Edens, Jamie Dinan and Dee and Jimmy Haslam in the release. “Following a widespread coaching search, we are extremely impressed by Adrian’s leadership and communication skills and welcome him to the Bucks family.”

Griffin will be introduced a press conference Tuesday morning.