The Milwaukee Bucks did not give Mike Budenholzer a mandate for how far the team would have to advance in order for him to keep his job. Milwaukee trails the Brooklyn Nets 2-1 in the Eastern Conference Semifinals following their Game 3 win.

"If Game 3 was the apex of this series for them, I think it's very unlikely and very difficult for them to keep Bud," said Adrian Wojnarowski. "He has a year left on his deal. They could have extended him early in the season or in the offseason. They chose not to. They were going to really ride this year out. 

"I don't know if he has to come back and win it... If it ends in a thud, it's hard to imagine he's back."

Malika Andrews added that the Bucks need to at least show "progress" for how the team can improve moving forward and better their title odds around Giannis Antetokounmpo. Andrews said the Bucks had a "thud" in 2019 when they blew a 2-0 lead to the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, and then a different "thud" in 2020 when they were eliminated by the Miami Heat in the second round.