After Firing Adrian Griffin, The Milwaukee Bucks Will Be Paying Three Coaches This Season

ByJoey Heldon January 25, 2024inArticles›Sports News

By record alone, the Milwaukee Bucks are having a strong season. The team is 30-13 and currently sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks also traded for Damian Lillard during the summer, which was the biggest move of the offseason.

And yet, things still seemed amiss. Griffin’s top assistant, Terry Stotts , left the team before its final preseason game. While the offense was pretty solid, the defense took a step back from previous seasons, ranking 22nd in defensive efficiency. There were also reports that the front office and perhaps some players were displeased with Griffin’s leadership.

Whatever the reason, the first-time head coach is out after 43 games. That means the Bucks will owe money to three different coaches this season.

After Firing Adrian Griffin, The Milwaukee Bucks Will Be Paying Three Coaches This Season - 1

John Fisher/Getty Images

Griffin signed a multiyear contract this offseason worth a little more than $4 million per year. Unless the Bucks have some kind of buyout agreement in place, they’re going to owe him the remainder of his contract. While the total length was unreported, the Bucks will be on the hook for $8 million over the next two seasons (and likely more than that).

After last season’s disappointing first-round exit, the Bucks fired Mike Budenholzer . He still has two years and $16 million on his contract — and the Bucks owe him all of that.

The Bucks made quick work replacing Griffin. Doc Rivers , who was serving as an analyst for ESPN, has agreed to a massive deal with the team. Milwaukee was also considering Jeff Van Gundy and Nate McMillan.

Milwaukee’s offer to Rivers is reportedly worth around $40 million and will run through the 2026-27 season, according to NBA reporter Shams Charania.

That means the Bucks now owe about $44 million over the next two seasons to three different coaches, including two who are no longer involved with the team.

The rumor mill suggested the Bucks didn’t believe Griffin could lead them to a championship. Rivers now has a ton of pressure to get the Bucks back to another title and give them a little bang for their, ahem, buck.

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The Phoenix Suns Are Paying Two Head Coaches Next Year — And Mike Budenholzer Is Making Money From Two Teams

ByJoey Heldon May 14, 2024inArticles›Sports News

The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks didn’t have much of a shared history before the 2021 postseason. Sure, the teams played against each other every year, but there wasn’t really a rivalry or any bad blood between them. Then they met in the NBA Finals, which the Bucks won in six games after dropping the first two contests of the series.

Well, the Suns and Bucks now have something else in common: They’re both paying head coach Mike Budenholzer .

Budenholzer and the Suns agreed to a five-year deal worth a reported $50 million. Under those terms, Budenholzer will earn $10 million per season, which makes him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league. The hiring comes the same week as the firing of previous head coach Frank Vogel .

After Firing Adrian Griffin, The Milwaukee Bucks Will Be Paying Three Coaches This Season - 2

Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

Now, the Suns owe Vogel the remaining $24 million or so on his deal, as well as the $50 million for Budenholzer. Unless there’s an unreported clause in Vogel’s contract, Phoenix will pay about $16 million combined to both head coaches for the next four seasons, for a grand total of $64 million.

Vogel served as the Suns’ head coach for just one season. Despite a 49-33 record and a playoff appearance, new Suns owner Mat Ishbia wanted to make a change. He got the best head coach who isn’t already tied to a team.

Budenholzer, 54, won NBA Coach of the Year during the 2014-15 and 2018-19 seasons. He has previously been head coach of the Atlanta Hawks and the Bucks. His total record as a head coach is 484-317 across ten seasons. Before that, he served as an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs for over a decade and a half.

Despite the 2021 championship, the Bucks fired Budenholzer after the 2022-23 season. The Bucks finished first in the Eastern Conference but lost in the first round to the No. 8 seed Miami Heat. Budenholzer still had $16 million and two years remaining on his deal, and the Bucks owed him all of that. He made $8 million this season and is due another $8 million next year. After the brief tenure of Adrian Griffin ended midseason and Doc Rivers replaced Griffin, the Bucks are currently paying three head coaches .

It’s possible Budenholzer’s buyout was negated after he signed with another team. However, with the way some of these contracts are worded, he very well may be making $18 million next year as both the Suns and Bucks pay guys not to coach for them.

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