Bud Appreciation Thread

[aboveAverage]

bud was a milwaukee buck treasure in his own right. i dont think a new coach will win as much with giannis and i gaurantee a new coach wont win as much without him. i sense the future for us is the future i experienced in my childhood after nelson left.

so im not just bummd by this im actually a bit pissed. this was the wrong move imo. obviously i hope im wrong but i feel it in my bones that we just effed up royally..

I also feel that way in a sense. But what was the alternative? Let Bud run in back and possibly lose in the first round next season again now that the game plan on how to beat us is out? He probably isn’t going to change his entire coaching philosophy. Then we fire him next season and lose another year of Giannis in his prime.

I do think that the players must have been consulted about the decision, at the very least Giannis. I just don’t think they had faith in his system anymore. We may as well try a new coach because Giannis is the only truly valuable commodity. If we lose Giannis, it won’t matter what coach we have.

[old skool]

The reality is that the Bucks will end up with a new coach that has been less successful than Budenholzer. Less accomplished over the last five seasons. Fewer games won. Fewer playoff games won. Few playoff series won.

I don't think Budenholzer gets enough credit for player development. He took a 10 year veteran in Brook Lopez and revolutionized his game on both ends of the floor. He took a 3 year veteran in Pat Connaughton who had showed little promise in Portland and turned him into a solid role player on a contender. He took a directionless Bobby Portis and developed him into a solid bench scorer and double double machine. He took Giannis, Middleton and Holiday and coached them to the best years of their careers. His coaching got more out of those veterans than any of us had a right to expect. And no other coach has done so much developing in 5 years as Budenholzer.

Still, I think the coaching change was the right move. The Bucks were in it to win titles and they weren't. Giannis is a perishable commodity who will be gone before we know it. Holding on another season would have been irresponsible. Another approach is warranted, even though it is quite unlikely that the next coach will bring more winning to Milwaukee than Bud did.

To be fair, not many coaches get a chance to start a gig with a superstar generational athlete just entering his prime years. Nurse also did quite well the only time he got to coach a superstar.

Nurse has had a couple of upper tier players in VanVleet and Siakam, two players consistently flirting with All-Star and All-NBA status. Yet he has missed the playoffs 2 of the last 4 seasons.

[DrWood]

I don't know why Bud was fired. Best RS record, and won the championship two years ago.
Often, when a high-performer is fired, it's because of a different reason. Behavior problems. Change in upper-level management.
Hard to imagine a guy who won't come with worse baggage or lower performance.

[aboveAverage]

I don't know why Bud was fired. Best RS record, and won the championship two years ago.
Often, when a high-performer is fired, it's because of a different reason. Behavior problems. Change in upper-level management.
Hard to image a guy who won't come with worse baggage or lower performance.

Bud being fired has everything to do with the desperation of trying to keep Giannis from leaving MKE two years from now. If Giannis committed to play for the Bucks for life, then I think they would’ve given Bud another year to make things right.

I commend Horst because it takes a lot of courage to make a decision like this, knowing that it won’t be seen as a good decision based on Bud’s overall track record. It shows that Horst and the owners have championships as their primary expectation. The standards are very high. I wish the Packers had the courage back then to move on from McCarthy earlier. Maybe we would’ve had one or two more Super Bowl trophies under Rodgers.

[aboveAverage]

I would’ve given Bud one more season to right the ship, but I can see why that was seen as too risky. And we don’t know what Giannis said to Horst behind the scenes. Maybe it was really something he asked for. I doubt it, but he must’ve at least been on board with it.

[Sigra]

One of the best regular season coaches. Ever.

But we had to fire him if we want to win championship with Giannis again. Our GM couldnt improve this team because Bud's system made us look great in regular season and if you are GM how could you do trades when your team play great?

We had to fire Bud, play bad in regular season and THEN improve teams with right trades and FA moves.

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

bud was a milwaukee buck treasure in his own right. i dont think a new coach will win as much with giannis and i gaurantee a new coach wont win as much without him. i sense the future for us is the future i experienced in my childhood after nelson left.

so im not just bummd by this im actually a bit pissed. this was the wrong move imo. obviously i hope im wrong but i feel it in my bones that we just effed up royally..

I also feel that way in a sense. But what was the alternative? Let Bud run in back and possibly lose in the first round next season again now that the game plan on how to beat us is out? He probably isn’t going to change his entire coaching philosophy. Then we fire him next season and lose another year of Giannis in his prime.

I do think that the players must have been consulted about the decision, at the very least Giannis. I just don’t think they had faith in his system anymore. We may as well try a new coach because Giannis is the only truly valuable commodity. If we lose Giannis, it won’t matter what coach we have.

losing in the first round is on Giannis Antetokounmpo and to a lesser extent khris and jrue.

bud gave these guys the keys to a system that has dominated the league and ultimately won a championship. but it isnt foolproof. he cant make them play hard, he cant make them not take idiotic chucked shots early in the clock, he cant make them unselfish. he cant stop giannis from being a westbrook clone or khris from being out of shape or jrue from his rollercoaster ways.

our guys have become lazy and entitled. giannis is an incredible talent but also the most overrated simplistic superstar the league has ever seen besides maybe shaq. but at least shaq wasnt running point. bringing in a coach to crack their heads and "play smarter" will backfire. bringing in a pg to "run the team" is laughable. ask malcolm brogdon about how that will work out.

for me i suspect the era of bucks dominance has ended. it began the minute bud arrived and it will end the day he leaves. giannis and khris were well into their prime and still nothing special as it relates to winning **** until he got here. lets not forget that

i become more pissed the more i think about this. bud could have been our sloan. he could have been our pop. and we chuck him and we dont even have the next guy lined up. were going to take our time and then pick a clown like the last dozen coaches before bud. horrific horrific horrific.... and if the players chose this then shame on them

[Ron Swanson]

Stunned. Didn't think they'd do this so soon and it feels especially cold-blooded after his brother's passing, but it's a business I guess. I wanna say it was January 2018 (when Kidd got **** canned) when I called my shot and said Bud was the guy you go out and get to take the roster to the next level, and he certainly did that and much more. Unprecedented 5-year run of success and it's depressing to think about how quickly things change in this league.

[JimmyTheKid]

Thanks for everything Bud. That championship run, post COVID restrictions, with the electricity in Deer District, attending Game 6, will go down as one of the best times of my life. Top sports moment for me, period. And its not close. Bud helped make it possible. That said, right call by the organization.

[chonestown]

I don't know why Bud was fired. Best RS record, and won the championship two years ago.
Often, when a high-performer is fired, it's because of a different reason. Behavior problems. Change in upper-level management.
Hard to image a guy who won't come with worse baggage or lower performance.

its puzzling

[emunney]

I don't know why Bud was fired. Best RS record, and won the championship two years ago.
Often, when a high-performer is fired, it's because of a different reason. Behavior problems. Change in upper-level management.
Hard to image a guy who won't come with worse baggage or lower performance.

its puzzling

Pretty bizarre to fire a guy who coached his team to a 16 point lead at the end of the 3rd quarter!

[GregAz]

I never imagined that I would feel so conflicted about the Milwaukee Bucks firing their coach. While the team's collapses in the playoffs were not all about Coach Bud, he certainly played a part in it. However, it cannot be denied how he brought the team together, led a team that was about as drama-free as a team can get for five years, and helped them win a championship. I will miss Bud, and I think that this will likely be the greatest five-year stretch during my lifetime for the Bucks.

That said, I think that firing him was the correct choice. While the odds of having a better team outcome with a new coach are slim, there is a chance. From what I have seen from Budenholzer, the championship was the peak for him, and the team wasn't going to get back to that level with him at the helm. He has had a history of coming into series with the team unprepared and being too late to make adjustments when things get rough.

To put an arbitrary number on it, I think we have a 20% chance of getting another championship with a new coach, whereas if we kept Bud, it was probably more like 5%. On the flip side of that, I think there is a much higher chance that we will completely bottom out now and lose Giannis to free agency.

I understand why Bud had to be fired, but I don't like it. This decision is more than one personnel move, as it will undoubtedly change the fabric of the team. While the most likely scenario is that this signals the end of champiioinship level basketball, it does leave a glimmer of hope that we can get back to hoisting the Larry O'Brien once again.

[Siefer]

I have a lot of affection for Bud and this 5 year run, and I think a lot of the heat he got was undeserved, but the collapses in 3 of those 5 postseasons is tough to swallow.

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

I have a lot of affection for Bud and this 5 year run, and I think a lot of the heat he got was undeserved, but the collapses in 3 of those 5 postseasons is tough to swallow.

its a shotmakers league not a coaches league. collapses should fall particularly hard on the players. its a coaches job to maximize talent and give that talent a chance. bud did that with no exception

[fan230]

The nba might be a business. But we are all Bucks fans not because the Bucks are a business. We are fans because of our emotional attachment to the team, of all that the Milwaukee Bucks have meant to us. The enjoyment, the thrill of winning, the frustration at losing, this has nothing to do with business but everything to do with our love for the Bucks.

To those who think that the firing of Bud increases the chances of Giannis re-signing, I beg to disagree. Remember how in the very recent felicitation of Giannis, he repeatedly pointed to the word Milwaukee? He loved Milwaukee and was grateful to the Bucks for giving him a chance in life.

Now it is a ‘business’ decision to fire Bud. I think this has significantly reduced the chances of Giannis re-signing with us. It will reduce the chances of re signing of Khris and Brook. They must all be thinking that the moment my performance dips, I am going to be dumped by this ‘business’ the Bucks. If I were them, I would just go where the money is better. Else, they would consider signing a club friendly financial contract. Players want to win but they are not machines, they also like to play in a team where they, and in this case, the coach, is not dumped because that is a ‘business’ decision.

Someone I know well, a young man, went to a small store in California before Game 1 of the Heat series. He was wearing a shirt with something like Bucks 1971 Nba champion. The owner of the store who has never lived in Milwaukee, was so excited to see that shirt. He started to mention the names of the players who gave our city our first championship 50 years ago. He still loves the Milwaukee Bucks. Because of the human connection, not because he thinks they made so-called good “business” decisions.

I hope Bud reads this forum and is aware that we are all in our own way paying tributes to him for his contributions to the Milwaukee Bucks.

[FrieAaron]

Funny thing about Bud's "collapses" - the two with that 60 win team in ATL and every series loss here was to a team that went to the finals, and 2 of the 5 won the championship. So the rest of the league didn't do too well against those teams either.

[GHOSTofSIKMA]

The nba might be a business. But we are all Bucks fans not because the Bucks are a business. We are fans because of our emotional attachment to the team, of all that the Milwaukee Bucks have meant to us. The enjoyment, the thrill of winning, the frustration at losing, this has nothing to do with business but everything to do with our love for the Bucks.

To those who think that the firing of Bud increases the chances of Giannis re-signing, I beg to disagree. Remember how in the very recent felicitation of Giannis, he repeatedly pointed to the word Milwaukee? He loved Milwaukee and was grateful to the Bucks for giving him a chance in life.

Now it is a ‘business’ decision to fire Bud. I think this has significantly reduced the chances of Giannis re-signing with us. It will reduce the chances of re signing of Khris and Brook. They must all be thinking that the moment my performance dips, I am going to be dumped by this ‘business’ the Bucks. If I were them, I would just go where the money is better. Else, they would consider signing a club friendly financial contract. Players want to win but they are not machines, they also like to play in a team where they, and in this case, the coach, is not dumped because that is a ‘business’ decision.

Someone I know well, a young man, went to a small store in California before Game 1 of the Heat series. He was wearing a shirt with something like Bucks 1971 Nba champion. The owner of the store who has never lived in Milwaukee, was so excited to see that shirt. He started to mention the names of the players who gave our city our first championship 50 years ago. He still loves the Milwaukee Bucks. Because of the human connection, not because he thinks they made so-called good “business” decisions.

I hope Bud reads this forum and is aware that we are all in our own way paying tributes to him for his contributions to the Milwaukee Bucks.

i think he was fired to appease them. doubt they walked into that lockerroom and had any accountability for why they choked. my guess is that the whispering in the halls about the "players coach" they all appreciated up until now is why he was canned. to appease them and help them get over their own failure by blaming something else

[aboveAverage]

The nba might be a business. But we are all Bucks fans not because the Bucks are a business. We are fans because of our emotional attachment to the team, of all that the Milwaukee Bucks have meant to us. The enjoyment, the thrill of winning, the frustration at losing, this has nothing to do with business but everything to do with our love for the Bucks.

To those who think that the firing of Bud increases the chances of Giannis re-signing, I beg to disagree. Remember how in the very recent felicitation of Giannis, he repeatedly pointed to the word Milwaukee? He loved Milwaukee and was grateful to the Bucks for giving him a chance in life.

Now it is a ‘business’ decision to fire Bud. I think this has significantly reduced the chances of Giannis re-signing with us. It will reduce the chances of re signing of Khris and Brook. They must all be thinking that the moment my performance dips, I am going to be dumped by this ‘business’ the Bucks. If I were them, I would just go where the money is better. Else, they would consider signing a club friendly financial contract. Players want to win but they are not machines, they also like to play in a team where they, and in this case, the coach, is not dumped because that is a ‘business’ decision.

Someone I know well, a young man, went to a small store in California before Game 1 of the Heat series. He was wearing a shirt with something like Bucks 1971 Nba champion. The owner of the store who has never lived in Milwaukee, was so excited to see that shirt. He started to mention the names of the players who gave our city our first championship 50 years ago. He still loves the Milwaukee Bucks. Because of the human connection, not because he thinks they made so-called good “business” decisions.

I hope Bud reads this forum and is aware that we are all in our own way paying tributes to him for his contributions to the Milwaukee Bucks.

I don’t know about that. I think it also shows the players that the front office isn’t blind. They recognize the flaws in Bud’s system and they expect better. They demand excellence and they expect to compete for a championship with this core. If I were Giannis, I’d be happy that the front office decided that they need to make the tough decisions that will bring us closer to a championship and not revel in nostalgia. What would the message and attitude be next year if we ran back exactly the same system that got us gentleman swept by a hobbled 8th seed?

[rayallenscalves]

Funny thing about Bud's "collapses" - the two with that 60 win team in ATL and every series loss here was to a team that went to the finals, and 2 of the 5 won the championship. So the rest of the league didn't do too well against those teams either.

It's not just about who they lost to. It's more about how they lost. That 60-win ATL team had home court in the Eastern Finals, only to get swept by the Cavs. His first Bucks team went up 2-0 on the Raptors, and then lost four in a row. The next year they nearly got swept before losing 4-1 in the conference semis as the 1-seed (cue bubble excuse). Finally, this year, they lost in one of the more epic sports collapses in recent memory.

These losses weren't solely on Bud, but he did nothing to help the cause either.

[paulpressey25]

Roster context:

Giannis - all world, but also was out for three of the five games. No outside shooting ability like Steph, Jokic, Jimmy, Embiid, etc.
Middleton - great player, not in good shape and a turnstile on defense at this point.
Jrue - gave up large part of our future assets. Couldn’t hold Jimmy under 50 points, while chucking and turning it over.
Brook - whole league gave up on this guy. Signed for $3mm deal
Grayson - most of you don’t consider him in the top 60 guards in the league. And you might be right.

Sixth men:
Bobby - free agent cast off with an attitude, signed with $3mm deal
Pat - free agent cast off, signed to $1.8mm min deal

Bud took that core and coached them into a title. But according to some on twitter, we should have multiple “chips” with Giannis already.

Again, I get the firing. I just don’t get the trolls running around cheering wildly.