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Mike Budenholzer was lambasted by basketball and Milwaukee Bucks fans for several egregious coaching blunders in their stunning loss to the Miami Heat. Milwaukee, owners of the best regular-season record in the NBA, lost to the eighth-seeded Heat in five games.
Right after the series ended, calls for the Bucks to fire Budenholzer started coming in. Many irate fans couldn’t understand why a champion coach could be so completely outmatched by Heat counterpart Erik Spoelstra.
LA Lakers shot-caller Darvin Ham may have the answer to those questions:
“Coach Bud is going through a lot on a personal level. He just lost a brother. He and I have been texting. I love those guys. They’re a part of my basketball family.”
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The Milwaukee Bucks were trailing 1-2 before Game 4 in Miami. Most basketball fans were probably concerned about Giannis Antetokounmpo’s status. “The Greek Freak” has played only 11 minutes in the series heading into Game 4 due to a bruised lower back.
Unknown to almost everyone, Budenholzer was going through hell, which might have been part of the reason for his coaching blunders. Considering the personal tragedy he was going through, it’s almost unbelievable that he never left his post and dealt with his profound loss.
Mike Budenholzer is the youngest of seven children and has three brothers. It hasn’t been ascertained yet which of his brothers died in a devastating car accident.
The pain the champion coach was going through must have affected his playcalling. During the Miami Heat’s crippling 13-0 run late in Game 4 allowed them to grab a 3-1 lead in the series. During the rally, Budenholzer refused to call a timeout to stop Miami’s momentum.
Miami had three timeouts at that point. One of which could have been used to regroup the flailing Bucks who committed one error after another to surrender the lead to the Heat.
The same mental mistake happened in Game 5. After Jimmy Butler tied the game at 118 all, Mike Budenholzer should have called a timeout so the Bucks can inbound at halfcourt. Instead, Giannis Antetokounmpo couldn’t even cross halfcourt to attempt a potential game-winning shot.
Giannis Antetokounmpo questioned but respected Mike Budenholzer’s defensive strategy against Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler
Mike Budenholzer assigned Jrue Holiday, one of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders, to Jimmy Butler. With the way the bigger and more bruising forward was dominating the perennial All-NBA Defensive team guard, Giannis Antetokounmpo felt the Bucks should have adjusted.
“Double -team him more, try to make him pass the ball. Maybe switch the matchup for a little bit, give Jrue a break. I don't think as a team we made the right [adjustment] or we didn't make as many adjustments as we could have against him.”
The Bucks’ former Defensive Player of the Year winner added:
“Yes. Out of respect, you gotta let the coach make that adjustment. ... At the end of the day, I wish I could guard him more.”
Mike Budenholzer reportedly still has two years and $16 million left on his contract. The Milwaukee Bucks lost a big opportunity but considering what their coach was dealing with, they'll likely keep him.
