Milwaukee Bucks: 3 biggest questions going into 2021 NBA Playoffs

Is this Mike Budenholzer’s last run with the Milwaukee Bucks?

There’s no biggest question that will be answered by how far the Bucks go this postseason than what Mike Budenholzer’s future holds in Milwaukee beyond this season.

The shot was already made across the bow that Budenholzer’s job will be determined by either playoff success or failure, which was first reported by The Athletic. All of this comes ahead of Budenholzer going into the final year of his four-year contract.

It’s far from a secret why that is. Despite being one of the most successful coaches in Bucks history, playoff success has eluded Budenholzer throughout his coaching career, both in Atlanta and now in Milwaukee. After last year’s explosive collapse to the Heat in the Conference Semifinals, the Bucks have invested heavily in improving their roster to make them better positioned for a longer, more successful playoff run.

Of course, the path for Budenholzer to survive in Milwaukee is harder than it has ever been over his three seasons at the helm. If they exact their revenge on Miami, they have a Brooklyn Nets team likely awaiting them in the next round and that will surely test them in entirely different ways than this upcoming Heat series.

All of this, though, comes with the territory in taking a more experimental approach when it comes to the regular season and all in the hopes of fostering more playoff success as a result. It hasn’t been pretty at times, but the Bucks still have made inroads in this department more than they ever have before under Budenholzer.

With all of that in mind, all Bucks players, coaches, officials and fans don’t want to see all these changes go for naught now that the time has come to put them all into practice and with their season on the line. Whether Budenholzer will be on the pulse of knowing what approach and scheme is necessary when needed is the biggest question that will determine the Bucks’ playoff run this year.