Mike Budenholzer of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Billy Donovan won Co-Coaches of the Year honors from the National Basketball Coaches Association (NBCA).
As ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Monday morning, both Budenholzer and Donovan beat out Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse by a single vote.
The Bucks entered the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex bubble site for the resumption of the 2019-20 season paused on March 11 due to the coronavirus pandemic with the Association’s best record (currently 54-13). Following a victory over the Utah Jazz on Saturday, OKC sits at 41-24 and sixth in the Western Conference.
While Budenholzer has reigning regular-season Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo in his lineup, Donovan kept the Thunder competitive despite the departures of Paul George and Russell Westbrook.
In a prepared statement, Dallas Mavericks coach and NBCA president Rick Carlisle said:
“Mike led the Bucks to the best record in the league for a second straight season and Billy became just the fourth active Head Coach to lead his team to the playoffs in each of his first five seasons. To win the vote of our peers makes the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award one of the most meaningful in all of pro sports.”
Mike D’Antoni of the Houston Rockets and Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra split the award in 2017, the first time two coaches tied in NBCA voting.
