As the basketball world is trying to piece together what happened to the Milwaukee Bucks in their epic first-round playoff loss to the Miami Heat. Most had no idea the amount of pain Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer was dealing with away from the court.
Per reports, the NBA championship-winning coach lost a brother prior to his team’s Game 4 loss to the Miami Heat. The team then lost Game 5 in overtime at home after leading by as many as 16 points in the fourth quarter, losing the series 4-1.
While losing is never a good thing, Coach Bud’s family situation puts the basketball problems into perspective.
On Friday Los Angeles Lakers head coach, Darvin Ham, a former Bucks assistant under Budenholzer, told reporters, “Coach Bud is going through a lot on a personal level, He just lost a brother, so, my apologies, Bud, if I wasn’t supposed to let anybody know. He and I’ve been texting. I love those guys. They’re a part of my basketball family.”
Budenholzer Confirms Brother’s Death
After Ham’s comments, Coach Bud did in fact confirm that his brother was killed in a car accident prior to the team’s Game 4 in South Beach. He also told The Athletic that “he loves and respects Ham and was comfortable confirming what Ham had told reporters.”
The fact that Coach Bud continued to lead his team despite a real family crisis ongoing, goes back to what Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue recently discussed.
During a recent appearance on “The Pivot” podcast, Lue talked about how being a coach affects your personal life.
The Clippers head coach said in March that he’s missed seven funerals in his hometown this season because his team was struggling.
The pressure was definitely on, and that in itself played a role in why he didn’t take some time away from the team, even though he probably should’ve.
Bucks’ Season Was A Failure
No matter how Giannis Antetokounmpo tries to spin it, the Bucks’ season was a failure. They were the league’s top overall seed after going 58-24, and to lose in five games to a Heat team that was four minutes from losing two play-in games, is unacceptable.
The Bucks led for the bulk of the final two losses before pretty much choking the leads away.
Sure, the season didn’t end the way the team would have liked, but there is life beyond basketball and that became very evident when the death of Budenholzer’s brother was revealed.
