Be Like Mike. Milwaukee coach Budenholzer, Bucks could provide a model for the Hornets
The person to whom James Borrego has grown accustomed to matching wits wasn’t there, absent because he’s stuck in the health and safety protocols like so many others scattered throughout the league.
Save for the godfather of their San Antonio coaching tree himself, Gregg Popovich, few people in the bench circles have had more of an influence on Borrego than Milwaukee’s Mike Budenholzer. That’s why Borrego had a pretty good idea what Budenholzer was doing — in a mental, telepathic sort of way.
“I think he’s relaxing, got his feet upon the couch,” the Hornets coach said Saturday night. “He’s probably having a glass of wine and some good dinner. I know Bud probably had some good takeout tonight and he’s going to kick back and enjoy the game. So he’s got a heck of a team and hopefully he’s feeling better, No. 1.
“Bud and I had a good text exchange and I’m sure we’ll have a few more.”
All to keep picking Budenholzer’s brain no doubt, getting as much information as humanly possible about the inner workings of the Bucks without Budenholzer giving out too many trade secrets. In the interim, the Hornets’ 114-106 victory over Milwaukee provided Borrego with something to point to. They’ve had issues outlasting the Bucks over the past few seasons, often finding themselves in nail-biting encounters due to tense, late-game situations.
Execution didn’t lack against the Bucks this time around, though.
“It gives us confidence,” said Miles Bridges, who was a force with 21 points, eight rebounds and three assists. “They’re the world champs for a reason. They weren’t hitting shots all game. As soon as it got to the fourth quarter, time to win the game, everybody was hitting shots. So, that just shows what type of team they are.”
The Hornets (21-19) would love nothing more than to mirror Milwaukee, taking some things from the Bucks’ championship blueprint and incorporating it into theirs. Perhaps at the top of that laundry list of items: Patience in allowing the front office to properly assemble the right cast, and the coaching staff the correct amount of time to hone and mold the talent.
Milwaukee essentially built its roster from the ground up, starting off with the guy who’s the two-time MVP and the reigning Finals MVP. Of the top players in the Bucks’ rotation, only two were originally drafted by Milwaukee. That’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was taken in the first round in 2013, and guard Donte DiVincenzo — a 2018 first-rounder.
Khris Middleton, Antetokounmpo’s smooth-shooting sidekick, was acquired via trade in 2013 from Detroit, and that also goes for another one of Milwaukee’s most recent additions, Jrue Holiday (2020). Three other key components of their championship team — Bobby Portis (2020), Brook Lopez (2018) and Pat Connaughton (2018) — were brought on board courtesy of free agency.
They revolve around Antetokounmpo, their fun-loving star, and that’s where the Hornets can potentially dream of building something similar with their promising prized lottery pick. Anyone who’s closely watched LaMelo Ball understands the special traits he possesses. He’s the centerpiece of their team structure.
Ball was at it again against Milwaukee, and had another one of his usual breathtaking passes that surely made the viral rounds on social media, whipping a ridiculous behind-the-back delivery to Mason Plumlee from halfcourt as he spun simultaneously. Hooking their future to Ball — who finished just shy of a triple double with 18 points, eight rebounds and eight assists — along with their core of Bridges and Terry Rozier has made the Hornets a hot ticket.
A juiced up crowd of 19,139 already marked the sixth sellout through 16 games this season at Spectrum Center. It’s also the third in their past four games, an indicator of the blowing winds of change in the Queen City.
Remember, the Hornets attracted free agents these past two offseasons, landing Gordon Hayward with that huge four-year, $120 deal in 2020 and securing Kelly Oubre’s services this past offseason at two years, $26 million. Say what you want about both contracts. Neither was likely an option dancing in the head of Hayward or Oubre in the months preceding them signing on the dotted line.
Milwaukee never really exactly had the words “premier free agent destination” attached to it, either.
“There’s optimism there,” Borrego said. “A lot of optimism there. It can be done. It can be done. You’ve just got to stick with it. It’s a process of just staying with it, you know? Anything is possible in this league. For Milwaukee, who would have thought five, 10 years ago, the Milwaukee Bucks would be the NBA champion? It’s a phenomenal story. So much goes into it.
“They are very fortunate to draft a guy like Giannis and his development. You need a little bit of luck to go your way, but I think we are headed in the right direction. I feel like things are turning a little. I like the direction we are headed. We need some luck to go our way, but as I always say you’ve got to control what you can control.”
Borrego laid out three areas in particular.
“That’s our effort, our preparation, taking strides every single year,” he said. “And hopefully you find and there is some opportunity to strike, and maybe add a player here or there through the draft or a trade, something like that to boost where you are headed. But we are in a good place here and I think it was exciting, No. 1, to watch Bud lead that group to a championship. But it gives a team like ours, a city like ours hope that this can be done. It is possible, especially in today’s NBA era. So our fans, our organization should take a lot of optimism from that.”
Count Bridges among those who do.
“Yeah, they’re a small market team,” Bridges said. “They’re a great example for all small market teams. Giannis did a great job of staying loyal to his team. Not a lot of guys do that, so I tip my hat to him. Giannis and Middleton, they built something there. Like I said, they’re a great example. So one day, that’s what we’re striving to be.”
Taking down the defending champs a night after Milwaukee dismantled Brooklyn is a good step to climb as they attempt to get to that point.
“It speaks to the depth of our team and how good I believe that we can be,” Borrego said. “I think it speaks to the strength of this team. I think the goal and the challenge is can we do this every night? Can we bring the same effort, intensity, respect to the game every single night? That’s the goal and we are growing in that area. We are not quite there. I wish I could bottle this up and share this with our guys. But this is the nature of human beings, this is the nature of the NBA as well. But that’s our goal right now.”
This story was originally published January 9, 2022 at 12:50 AM.
