The Phoenix Suns didn't take long to make seismic changes in the aftermath of a first-round sweep at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Not even 24 hours after relieving Frank Vogel of his head coaching duties, the Suns have reportedly hired Mike Budenholzer as his replacement, per Shams Charania of The Athletic. According to Charania, Budenholzer's contract is worth more than $50 million over five years.

Budenholzer most notably coached the Milwaukee Bucks to a championship in 2021, and, poetically, it was the Suns that Budenholzer defeated in the NBA Finals three years ago despite going down 2-0 early on in the series. Now, he'll be expected to make the most out of Phoenix's expensive core of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal as they try to put their disappointing 2023-24 season in the rearview mirror.

Frank Vogel has his strengths as a coach, but clearly, the Suns felt like a change in leadership was necessary after it seemed like the team underperformed relative to its potential. It got to a point where some Suns players reportedly couldn't take Vogel seriously, as evidenced by their reaction to an outburst from the head coach during a game late in the regular season against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Mike Budenholzer, of course, did not exactly cover himself in glory to end his coaching stint with the Bucks. Milwaukee bowed out of the playoffs in just five games last season despite being the one-seed, and Budenholzer was scapegoated as a result. Perhaps a change of scenery and a new cast of players could help rejuvenate Budenholzer's coaching career.

The Suns' race against time

The Suns are feeling a great sense of urgency to make their roster work, and for good reason. They have mortgaged their future to build the vaunted trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal, giving up a ton of first-round picks and pick swaps, only for them to win a grand total of zero games in the playoffs in their first season together.

Under new team owner/governor Mat Ishbia, the Suns have not been afraid to embrace wholesale changes. Only Booker remains from the roster that made it to the 2021 NBA Finals, and last season saw a mass exodus in the team's coaching staff following the firing of Monty Williams.

The Suns brought Kevin Young back and rewarded him handsomely with a huge extension, but overall, there were plenty of new faces on the bench for a Phoenix team that has gotten progressively worse since coming to within two wins away of winning it all three years ago.

Now, more changes are coming and the Suns are starting to pay the price, literally. Williams still had three years and $21 million left on his deal at the time of his firing, while Frank Vogel still has four years and around $25 million left on his. That's a total of $46 million that the team is paying the two to not coach the team, and Mike Budenholzer's contract is only going to add to their financial burden.

The good thing is that Mat Ishbia is not afraid to spend. But it's fair to wonder whether he's being wise in his allocation of funds and whether he has thought some of his decisions through as thoroughly as fans would hope.

It only took two days for the Suns to fire Monty Williams following their playoff exit at the hands of the Denver Nuggets last year, and this season, Frank Vogel only lasted 11 days following their final game of the season against the Minnesota Timberwolves before getting the boot.

At the very least, the Suns can look forward to some better roster continuity, and Budenholzer has shown in the past that he can optimize talented yet underperforming rosters. When the Bucks brought him in in 2018, Milwaukee went from a middling 44-win team to a dominant 60-win powerhouse in the Eastern Conference, making it all the way to the Conference Finals in his first year with the team.

Given how stacked the Western Conference is, elevating the team from good to great will be a very difficult task for Budenholzer. Budenholzer can only do so much if the Suns are unable to fill the roster with quality two-way depth, and it's going to be so hard for the Suns to be a championship team if Bradley Beal continues to underperform. But Budenholzer took this job knowing full well the difficulty of the task that lies ahead, and the risks that come with failing to meet expectations.