Willie Green could look to add a former NBA championship-winning coach to his staff this summer. Mike Budenholzer was dismissed after one season as the Head Coach of the Phoenix Suns, he could be the missing piece on Green's staff. With no head coaching vacancies outside of the Knicks job, if Bud wants to be part of something next season, his best option could be to join a team's staff as an assistant.
Budenholzer has been a head coach for 12 years, has won two Coach of the Year awards and captured an NBA title in 2021. He began his coaching journey with the San Antonio Spurs
under Gregg Popovich. He thrived as an assistant under Pop and helped the Spurs win four NBA championships in his 17 years in San Antonio.
Even though we've seen Bud wait for a head gig to open up in years past, something feels different this time. After taking a full year off from coaching and then getting fired after just one season, it feels unlikely he'll take the same approach again. At 55 years old, Bud could find a new home with the Pelicans and bring a championship pedigree to New Orleans.
The missing piece on Green's staff
Something is missing when looking at Willie Green's staff—a former head coach with a winning pedigree. The only former NBA head coach on Green's staff is James Borrego, who spent four years as the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets, compiling a record of 138-163. This mediocre record isn't all Borrego's fault as those Hornets teams had their fair share of flaws. That said, Borrego still lacks the winning experience that could elevate Green’s staff.
This is where Budenholzer can come in. He would bring the experience that Green can confide in when making tough decisions— from lineup decisions to defensive matchups and end-of-game strategy. Bud brings not only his head coaching experience but also the influence of all-time great Gregg Popovich.
The addition of Budenholzer would also provide the Pelicans staff someone players can respect because of his resume. The Pelicans need someone outside of Willie who can hold players accountable for bad defensive slips, bad shot selection, and turnovers. That type of accountability is missing, and Bud could provide it.
Budenholzer would likely play a similar role as Jeff Van-Gundy did this past season for the LA Clippers. Van-Gundy came to the Clippers with the focus on improving the team's defense, and he had incredible success. The Clippers jumped from the 16th best defensive rating in 2023-24 to the 3rd best in 2024-25.
Bud could do a similar thing for the Pelicans, who ranked second-worst in defensive rating this past season. In his 12 years as a head coach, he produced six top-5 defenses, including two that were number 1. This type of defensive genius could help elevate the Pelicans' approach on that side of the basketball.
Bringing in an experienced head coach like Budenholzer to Green's staff can help elevate the Pelicans' defense and instill a real championship culture in this group.