Bud out

PLUS: The Warriors give everyone an early night.

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

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The Artist’s Garden at Giverny; Claude Monet; 1900

The Milwaukee Bucks sent Mike Budenholzer home on Thursday, which is not much of a surprise given how bad the Bucks looked in the face of a full frontal assault by the No. 8 seed Miami Heat in the first round. Even with Giannis Antetokounmpo recovering from a back injury, the Bucks’ lack of adjustments — a pretty consistent critique of Budenholzer as a coach — took center stage as a point of blame for Milwaukee falling short. That Budenholzer was simultaneously grieving his brother, who was killed in a car crash during the series, is deeply sad. But the Bucks clearly felt that they needed to move on regardless.

There is much to be said about how much the Bucks improved when Budenholzer took over for Jason Kidd. In Bud’s Atlanta tenure, roster improvements helped explain the team’s improvement. In Milwaukee, it was more the case of installing updated tactics that suited the Bucks’ personnel much better, and developing the right relationships in the locker room. And then, of course, Jrue Holiday arrived to make it all make sense.

As such, if Budenholzer decides to be a head coach again, his biggest value is in that initial adjustment and refocus. He is the proverbial floor-raiser, installing a system to clean up loose weaknesses and force teams to adjust to his squad or lose. Lots of franchises need that, and with the right roster and luck (which every championship coach needs) he has proven he can take a team all the way to the parade.