Milwaukee Bucks Roundtable: Discussing the head coach search so far

4. Who would be your pick to get the job and what do you think they could offer the Bucks?

MH: I’d go with Budenholzer. It’s a pretty special opportunity to get a shot at a coach who has had proven success and also specializes in player development. Bud has a track record in both of those areas, and I think it’s a great fit. He would help the Bucks win out of the gate, and I also think in the short term he’ll be the guy with the best chance to get the most out of guys like Thon Maker, Sterling Brown, and D.J. Wilson.

BS: Budenholzer is my favorite of all the candidates. Fizdale provided some stiff competition but since his hiring in New York, Budenholzer has become the consensus pick in my opinion. He is a proven commodity and for a team that’s on the clock to prove to their superstar that he should re-sign with Milwaukee, the sure thing signing is the safest route to take. This is not to say other coaches on the market currently won’t turn out better. There may well be better options than Budenholzer, but there are also definitely worse options and this is not a time to start playing with fire.

BP: My pick would be Nick Nurse. I understand that this might be a bad time to stand up for someone on Toronto’s staff, but I am just way too impressed with the changes he made to their offense this year. The Bucks could use some elements of modern basketball injected into their offense, and Nurse was at least partly responsible for quickly turning around a team (and two star players) that had done things the old way for a long time. Toronto’s bench is also clearly better than Milwaukee’s, but there is also a track record for that staff (Nurse included) maximizing limited players and taking advantage of what they can do well.

JT: I’m quite open to many of the names we’ve seen associated with the job and would be interested in some who, at this time of writing, have made the rounds for other openings around the league that haven’t yet for the Bucks. But as I’ve not so hidden at this point, I’m backing Mike Budenholzer for my pick as the Bucks’ next head coach.

Simply put, he checks many boxes of what is essential for the Bucks to reshape their present and future based on what he accomplished over his five seasons with the Atlanta Hawks. Of course, there’s no guarantee that will ensure success with the Bucks or in any of his next stops in the future should he not get the job, but the overall package he brings would address many of the concerns the Bucks are dealing with at the moment.

LW: Chris Finch. The Bucks were actually a good offensive team last year if you go by rating, but I think Milwaukee could be an elite offensive team with a great offensive coach. The Bucks half court sets often left a lot to be desired, and Giannis Antetokounmpo often found himself with the ball in a bad position with the shot clock running down. Finch has done wonders for the Pelicans offense and Anthony Davis, and I think he could  do the same for the Bucks. He also has a good record for developing talent. I would like to hear his answers to questions about his defensive scheme as a head coach, but he is well respected around the league, and he will be a head coach somewhere soon.

AM: At this point it’s no surprise for me to say this, but I’d hire Mike Budenholzer. He proved himself to be one of the league’s best coaches in his time with the Hawks, and he’s still only relatively fresh from a long-time role as a key voice on Gregg Popovich’s bench in San Antonio.

Budenholzer has consistently coached his teams up to surpass expectations or any perceived talent limitations. He’s had success with both offensive minded teams and defensive minded teams. He has a track record of constructing a great staff and working alongside them to do some of the best development work of any coach in the NBA. He’s tweaked and even overhauled his style to suit his players. And he’s done this without ever having a player as good as Giannis.

I kind of understand why some people are trying to overthink this, but Bud is the guy.