PHOENIX, ARIZONA – MARCH 21: Head coach Mike Budenholzer of the Phoenix Suns talks with Cody Martin … More
With Mike Budenholzer getting fired by the Phoenix Suns, the veteran coach – who won a championship with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021 – is now a free agent.
In what was ultimately a disappointing season for the Suns, especially considering the top-tier talent on the roster in form of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, Budenholzer wasn’t the sole culprit.
The organization failed to build a team with enough size and skill around their two stars, leading the Suns to constantly play small.
That said, Budenholzer had his issues too, such as a reluctance to play Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro, the team’s rookies, despite obvious reasons for putting them on the floor.
What now?
With Budenholzer now available for other teams, any potential match starts with aligning values. It would make little sense for a franchise that’s rebuilding around youth to explore a partnership, unless Budenholzer himself is open to taking on the responsibility of focusing on player development.
More than likely, Budenholzer will be targeted by win-now organizations that are unsure of whether their current head coach is up to the task of making a Finals run.
If the New York Knicks are eliminated early in the playoffs, can they justify bringing back Tom Thibodeau after a year in which all five starters played over 35 minutes per game?
If the Knicks find themselves in the market for a new head coach, going with a guy who succeeded in not only scaling down the minutes of Giannis Antetokounmpo, but simultaneously lifting his game, wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world.
We’ve already seen how Kenny Atkinson, who has diminished the workload of his starters, enjoy immense success in the regular season by leaning into depth.
Could Budenholzer work similar magic on the Knicks, if Thibodeau were to be pushed out? The possibility can’t be ruled out.
The right fit
Of course, no one knows for sure if Budenholzer is back in the big seat next season. He could take a year off, and gather parts of the $50 million Phoenix signed him to last year.
He wouldn’t be the first fired head coach to simply wait out parts of the contract, which makes sense. Who among us wouldn’t like to get paid roughly $10 million while taking a year off?
The contractual elements adds an interesting layer to Budenholzer’s new future team.
He has all the time in the world to find the right situation, even if that situation doesn’t present itself until a year or two down the road.
Perhaps the San Antonio Spurs job opens up at some point soon, and he targets that. Perhaps a team levels up from fringe playoff team to championship contender, and he is the man to take it all the way.
Regardless of situation, Budenholzer is in no rush.
Even if a few teams make him huge offers this summer, but the fit seems off, Budenholzer would have every reason to pass on those offers, in the search for a position to find himself back on the podium after an NBA Finals series.
If that job is available this summer, he should take it. If it’s not, he won’t have to do anything.
In other words, if a team is interested in Budenholzer to helm their immediate future, they likely will have to make him one heck of a pitch, or have an enormously intriguing roster, to convince him to sign on.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
