It seems that things are getting messy within the Phoenix Suns, and the center of this tussle is head coach Mike Budenholzer. Budenholzer is facing serious criticism, with reports suggesting that both players and staff members are fed up with him.
Adding insult to injury is the Suns’ miserable record this season. Despite having big names like Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Devin Booker, Phoenix has struggled, losing seven of their last 10 games, and currently sits 11th in the Western Conference.
With high expectations coming into the season, things are clearly not going as planned. Now, Phoenix sports reporter John Gambadoro has further criticized Budenholzer, stating that things are not good between the Suns’ players and their head coach.
Frustration Growing Inside the Phoenix Suns Locker Room
Gambadoro didn’t hold back on his radio show, “Burns & Gambo,” saying Budenholzer has been “miserable to deal with” behind the scenes.
“Mike Budenholzer has done a terrible job,” he said. “To me, it looks like he’s disinterested in coaching this basketball team. From everything I hear in the organization, from people that are around [it], he is miserable to deal with. MISERABLE to deal with.”
It’s not just the losing streak that’s making things worse — Budenholzer’s relationships with key players also seem to be falling apart. He benched Beal and Jusuf Nurkić, and Phoenix failed in its attempts to trade for Jimmy Butler or move Kevin Durant to the Golden State Warriors.
Gambadoro’s fired-up response comes on the heels of unsettling reports that tension is brewing inside the Suns’ locker room. NBA insider Chris Haynes shared that Budenholzer recently called Booker into his office to tell him to stop being so vocal on the court and in timeouts, which left the All-Star guard “shocked.”
“Sources: Weeks ago, Suns coach Mike Budenholzer called a meeting with Devin Booker, imploring him to tone it down vocally, leaving the star shocked. Inside that meeting, which provides context to Booker’s postgame remarks on communicating. #haynesbriefs,” Haynes wrote.
Sources: Weeks ago Suns coach Mike Budenholzer called a meeting with Devin Booker imploring he tone it down vocally, leaving the star shocked. Inside that meeting which provides context to Booker’s postgame remarks on communicating. #haynesbriefs
Brought to you by @MoveInsoles pic.twitter.com/sVlTWB4Mrh
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 28, 2025
Booker later spoke out after a tough 124-116 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday, Feb. 27, saying, “It can be fixed with a little more talking, I’d say. Things get tough; we get quiet as a team.”
He added, “I’d rather two people say the wrong thing to each other than nobody talk at all and leave the gray area. I always look at myself first, but I also talk a lot.”
While it might be considered that Booker was only speaking about the tough loss that his team suffered, in the light of Haynes’ report, his statement seems to highlight the rift growing between Budenholzer and the rest of the team.
The Suns’ now former center, Nurkić, also shared that there was discontent between him and Phoenix’s head coach in January. Nurkić revealed his frustration, saying he and Budenholzer haven’t spoken in two months.
“We don’t have a relationship,” Nurkić admitted. “So, it’s fine. For me, just be a pro and do the best I can. Work and stay ready for whatever might be, but there is no chaos or bringing that to this team. They already have plenty of it.”
“It’s hard to understand why,” Nurkic said about Budenholzer moving him to the bench. “As you know, I try to do whatever they want from me. I play my role or whatever, but at the end of the day, it’s the NBA.”
The Suns’ problems are only getting worse. Despite having the highest payroll in the NBA at $220 million — plus another $200 million in luxury tax — the team sits at 28-32 in Budenholzer’s first season. With all this tension in the locker room, it’s fair to wonder how much longer Budenholzer will be calling the shots in Phoenix.
