Mike Budenholzer to coach Team Giannis in 2019 NBA All-Star Game

MILWAUKEE (Jan. 31, 2019) – Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer and his staff will coach Team Giannis in the 2019 NBA All-Star Game. With a 105-92 win over the Toronto Raptors tonight, the Bucks (37-13) clinched the best record in the Eastern Conference through games played on Sunday, Feb. 3, giving Budenholzer the right to coach Team Giannis in the 68th NBA All-Star Game.

Budenholzer has led the Bucks to the best record in the NBA this season, with this being the first time since April 13, 1986 that Milwaukee has been 24 or more games over .500. The Bucks have won an NBA-high 27 games by double figures, including tonight’s 13-point win over the second-place Raptors, and are the only team in the NBA to rank inside the top five of both offensive and defensive rating. Milwaukee is the second-highest scoring team in the league (117.0 ppg) and has the best points per game differential in the NBA at 9.7.

This is the second All-Star Game head coaching honor for Budenholzer, who led the Eastern Conference in 2015 as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks. He is the Bucks’ second All-Star Game head coach, joining Larry Costello who was a head coach during the 1971 and 1974 All-Star Games. Budenholzer will be joined at the All-Star Game by Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was named a captain and starter for the All-Star Game last week, and forward Khris Middleton, who was announced as a reserve for the All-Star Game earlier tonight.

The 68th NBA All-Star Game will tip-off at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 17 from Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.