Getty Head coach Mike Budenholzer of the Milwaukee Bucks reacts to a foul call during a game against the Chicago Bulls.
Mike Budenholzer likely earned himself a large pay bump with his performance this season. His Milwaukee Bucks went from a No. 7 seed last year to the top overall seed in the entire NBA Playoffs after a 60-22 record.
He has one true superstar in Giannis Antetokoumpo along with first-time All-Star Khris Middleton. Otherwise, Budeholzer has figured out a way to maximize points out of the league’s top-scoring offense and complement it with a top-10 scoring defense.
He signed a 4-year contract with Milwaukee after departing as the Atlanta Hawks coach after last year’s 24-58 campaign. It’s not quite clear what he’s making on an annual basis with the Bucks, but there are some hints at his current earnings.
Let’s take a look at what the 49-year old is possibly making this season prior to his Bucks trying to even the conference semifinals series versus the Celtics.
Mike Budenholzer Contract, Possible Salary & Current Earnings
According to Boyd’s Bets, Budenholzer made $2 million a year with the Atlanta Hawks as of last season. That would be amongst the lowest in the league alongside Philadelphia’s Brett Brown (another who coached his team to the postseason).
It’s unclear what Milwaukee is paying him, but it is clear that Atlanta paid him for this past season and will do so once again next year. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via NBC Sports):
Budenholzer had two years and approximately $13 million remaining on his contract. He will get it all, which is a lump Hawks owner Tony Ressler did not want to swallow. But if Budenholzer is hired by another organization, which is expected — he’s currently a candidate for the New York Knicks’ job — his new salary will shrink the Hawks’ financial obligations.
Since he quickly signed a contract with Milwaukee, the prevailing assumption is that the two teams split the difference on that $13 million for the first two seasons of his current contract.
He initially worked for Atlanta on a 3-year contract starting in 2013. By 2014-15, he earned NBA Coach of the Year for leading the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals. This earned him a promotion to president of basketball operations and a contract extension as coach.
Outside of that Journal-Constitution report of what he’s earning from his Atlanta days, there’s not a lot of other info on annual salaries or earnings. Considering that he’s been the head man for a major leap for the Bucks, he should be compensated well going forward.