Less than two hours after the dismissal of Frank Vogel as the Suns head coach, there is already a frontrunner for the team’s next coach.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!ESPN’s Adrian Wojanrowski reports that coach Mike Budenholzer “is emerging as the frontrunner to become the Phoenix Suns’ next coach, sources tell ESPN.”
Wojnarowski added that: “Budenholzer is the Suns’ target and talks are expected to move quickly, sources tell ESPN. He’s been working to assemble a coaching staff for a return to a head coaching job and that process is also gathering momentum, sources said.”
Budenholzer is the Suns’ target and talks are expected to move quickly, sources tell ESPN. He’s been working to assemble a coaching staff for a return to a head coaching job and that process is also gathering momentum, sources said. https://t.co/PSWPi9C6Pr
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 9, 2024
Budenholzer had already been immediately reported to be a name to watch for the next Suns’ coach.
In regards to the coaching staff report, Charles Lee, Budenholzer’s lead assistant on the Bucks, was hired as the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets this morning.
Budenholzer, 54, coached the Bucks to their 2021 NBA Finals win over the Suns. He has been out of coaching for a year after five seasons (2018-2023) with the Bucks, in which he finished with a 271-120 record (.639 winning percentage). Budenholzer, the NBA Coach of the Year in 2014-15 and 2018-19, was dismissed after the Bucks lost in the first round to the Miami Heat in 2023.
This is eerily similar to the position that Vogel was in after he won the 2020 NBA Finals with the Lakers and then was dismissed in 2022 and took a year off coaching before being hired by Phoenix.
Before Milwaukee, Budenholzer spent five years as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks (2013-2018), amassing a 213-197 record (.520 winning percentage) there.
He began his coaching career as an assistant under coach Gregg Popovich and the San Antonio Spurs during Popovich’s first year in San Antonio. He stayed with the Spurs as an assistant from 1996-2013.
Budeholzer is an Arizona native, growing up a Suns fan in Holbrook, Arizona. His father coached basketball at Holbrook High School for 25 years, won a state championship in 1971 and is in the Arizona Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
According to BetArizona.com, Budenholzer is +200 odds to land the coaching job. He is followed by Clippers coach Tyronn Lue at +400, then Sacramento’s G-League coach Lindsey Harding at +800 and ESPN analyst JJ Redick at +900. Four more candidates, including three current assistants and Suns great Steve Nash, have odds over +1000.
Who do you want to see be the next head coach of the Suns?
Reports: Mike Budenholzer a strong candidate to replace Frank Vogel
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
