Much has been said on social media about the Phoenix Suns firing Mike Budenholzer on Monday, April 14.
The two-time NBA Coach of the Year Budenholzer was with his home state team Suns for just one season. Led by their Big 3 of Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, the Suns had an underwhelming 36-46 record and failed to reach the playoffs for the first time since the 2019-20 season. This is the third straight year that the Suns ousted their coach amid championship expectations, per their NBA-record $400 million roster. More changes are imminent, including the Big 3’s potential breakup following Phoenix’s enormous failure.
ESPN’s Sham Charania reported that the Suns will work with Durant and his business partner this offseason to find a new trade destination for him. This comes after the Suns put Durant in talks with Golden State to pursue Jimmy Butler before the trade deadline in February.
Here’s how Suns fans and NBA media members reacted to the news, including the renewed Durant trade rumors.
Bud got a raw deal here
Roster had major problems and Beal was the biggest one
But, Durant needs a roster specifically built around him with role players who can defend.
Having 3 stars who can’t defend won’t take a team far. https://t.co/YGo3dBSGdB
— Paul Henning (@brewcitypaul) April 14, 2025
No surprise at all to see the Suns make yet another firing. They are the only team not in the playoffs who don’t have a draft lottery pick. What a fire dumpster.
— Geoff Long (@GeoffLong33) April 14, 2025
the firing of Mike Budenholzer is not surprising at all. failures of this team —not completely his fault (it was a poorly constructed from the beginning), but as we know … the coach is always the first domino to fall
— Ashley Nicole Moss (@AshNicoleMoss) April 14, 2025
Budenholzer should never have taken that job. Phoenix was a sinking ship and he jumped on
— K.C. (@Not___KC) April 14, 2025
The suns just fired Mike Budenholzer 😭😂 pic.twitter.com/5NNgJcc0jj
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) April 14, 2025
The Suns have now fired 3 head coaches in the last 23 months:
Monty Williams
Frank Vogel: one season and done
Mike Budenholzer: one season and doneChaotic franchise https://t.co/diUEa43a39
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 14, 2025
The Suns’ next head coach will be Devin Booker’s 8th different coach in 11 seasons. Think about that.
— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) April 14, 2025
The Phoenix Suns fired Mike Budenholzer for several reasons. The team did not compete. There was no energy. The team didn’t like each other. His relationship with players was not good. They were awful defensively. Just overall performance. Overall it was considered “A bad fit”
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) April 14, 2025
Suns fired Coach Bud today. What took the owner so long? Whose idea was it to hire him in the first place? Has that person been fired? Was that person ever hired? Or is he just a consultant? The same person who advised owner to trade for Bradley Beal? Not mentioning any names!
— Peter Vecsey (@PeterVecsey1) April 14, 2025
Kevin Durant single-handedly got 3 coaches fired in 3 straight seasons https://t.co/ROhGpqfzya
— PlayoffDeuce (@PlayoffMcBride) April 14, 2025
The Kevin Durant hate is so unwarranted. It is actually crazy. Bro comes in like a true professional, does his job when things go right he never gets the praise.
When things go wrong he gets all the blame… WTHELLY!— Soul 👾 (@SoulBets) April 14, 2025
Firing a head coach after one year because he “can’t connect with the roster” when the entire league knows you’re trading Durant this summer and have been shopping Beal constantly is very funny, I’ll give the Suns that https://t.co/IQRnIqlpn4
— Kyle Neubeck (@KyleNeubeck) April 14, 2025
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns fans react to Budenholzer fired, Durant trade rumors resurface