Sun’s Coaching Nightmare! Insiders Reveal Mike Budenholzer’s Toxic Behavior
According to NBA insider John Gambadoro, people within the Phoenix Suns say head coach Mike Budenholzer is miserable to deal with.
The Suns fired Frank Vogel after one season and hired Budenholzer, who won the 2021 championship with the Milwaukee Bucks against Phoenix.
The Suns are 28-32. They are in 11th place in the Western Conference standings despite having Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.
Phoenix is 14th in the NBA in points per game, 22nd in points per game allowed, ninth in offensive rating, 27th in defensive rating and 19th in net rating.
According to NBA insider Chris Haynes, Budenholzer recently implored Booker to be less vocal. Booker, one of the best scorers in the league, was “shocked” by Budenholzer’s request.
Before the Suns beat the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday (2/28), Budenholzer talked about Haynes’ report.
“I think it’s super healthy. Everybody’s got different ways of communicating, different ways that you do it,” Budenholzer said. “We’re always pushing everything we do to be better. That’s nothing new. But (Booker’s) very vocal and that’s a good thing. I don’t want there to be any confusion about that.
“If you’ve been around sports your whole life, it’s hard to stay vocal, it’s hard to stay connected, it’s hard to do all those things. That’s why winning is hard. We talk to the team, we talk amongst ourself. There’s so many things you got to do to win. And that’s including fighting through adversity and continuing to communicate.”
If the Suns miss the playoffs this season, don’t be surprised if Budenholzer is fired after one season like Vogel was.
“I like a little adversity,” Durant said. “Back against the wall and see how we respond. We didn’t respond well (Thursday) night. We might not respond well the next game. We (just got to) keep putting our best foot forward and keep going and see how we can get better. That’s the part of the NBA people don’t understand.”
