The NBA season is less than a week away, and we are starting to notice a few trends. Certain teams are struggling (looking at you Clippers and Thunder), certain players are playing well (Klay Thompson and Boogie Cousins), and some things remain the same (LeBron dominating). I, however, do not put too much stock into preseason games. They are a chance for younger guys to get quality “NBA” minutes and for coaches to try out funky rotations (ex. Could Phoenix really play a 3 PG, 1 SG/SF, 1 PF set?).
The Charlotte Hornets are off to a 3-4 start with one more game to play tonight against Indiana. I’ll be detailing the Hornets preseason after the final game with thoughts and observations, as Hornets Nation gets prepared for the regular season opener against Milwaukee on October 29.
Just for fun, I’ve decided to dedicate an article to the top 5 NBA coaches. Rarely do coaches get a lot of love, and they are paid much less than the players. Just for reference, the highest paid NBA coach this season, of those who have public salary information, is Doc Rivers at $10M. Boston will pay Gerald Wallce slightly over $10M this season. Who would you rather have for $10M? Coaches are important, not only for strategy, but for their ability to foster team chemistry and allow a team to grow into its full potential.
So without further ado, here are the top 5 current NBA coaches.
5. Tom Thibodeau
Thibodeau, the Chicago Bulls coach, comes in at number five. He has only been a head coach for four seasons, but he has already made his mark on the league. Even before he was a head coach, Thibodeau was an assistant coach for #4 on my list and helped the Boston Celtics reach two NBA Finals in 2008 and 2010. Thibodeau is known as a defensive genius and many coaches around the league have begun to emulate his defensive tactics. Not to get too technical, but Thibodeau’s style involves keeping more defenders in the paint and daring officials to call defensive three seconds. Most officials are more worried about traveling or fouls and fail to call defensive three seconds. This forces opponents to take jump shots, and works out well for Chicago.
Thibodeau has a .657 winning percentage, was named NBA Coach of the Year after his first season, and has had to deal with Derrick Rose‘s knees that resemble jello. With Rose healthy, Thibodeau and the Bulls have won around 75% of their games. If Rose can come back at full speed, the Bulls should challenge for the best record in the Eastern Conference. The only thing that keeps Thibodeau from being higher on this list is that he has never reached the NBA Finals as a head coach. Until he does this, he will stay at number five.
4. Doc Rivers
Doc Rivers
Doc Rivers, the Los Angeles Clippers head coach, is heralded around the NBA as a great basketball coach. River, a former All-Star PG, has coached the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics, and the Los Angeles Clippers and owns a .564 career winning percentage. After his first season with Orlando, River won the NBA Coach of the Year award. He was in Orlando for 4+ seasons, but the Magic never got past the first round of the playoffs. After a 1-10 start to the 2003-2004, River was fired and in search of his next job.
Boston came calling, and Rivers again had success in his first season with a new team. However he fell on tough times, and was only 102-144 after his thrid season. Then came THE BIG 3. Boston acquired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen before the ’07-’08 season, and Rivers, along with Paul Pierce, guided his team to the NBA Championship. I personally believe that Rivers’ overall success in Boston is solely based on his talented team, but he did have to make the correct rotational decisions with his players. Boston returned to the NBA Finals in 2010, but lost to the LA Lakers.
Rivers eventually wore out his time in Boston, and is now controlling the LA Clippers. Last year, the Clippers had 57 wins (a franchise record) and Doc seems poised to have another competitive team this year. Rivers has been to 2 NBA Finals (winning 1), and 3 conference finals (winning 2). Some of you may feel that he is better than my #3 coach, but I think without the acquisitions of Garnett and Allen, Rivers would have been fired in Boston and he would not be as highly thought of. However, he made the best of his situation, and I cannot fault him for that.
3. Rick Carlisle
Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle comes in at #3 on my list. Carlisle owns a .588 winning percentage and has won one NBA Championship. He got his NBA head coaching career started with the Detriot Pistons in 2001. The Pistons posted back-to-back 50-32 records with Carlisle and reached the Eastern Conference Finals in his 2nd season. Carlisle never saw eye to eye with management and was let go following those two seasons.
Indiana quickly hired Carlisle and he guided the Pacers to 61 wins and a berth in the Eastern Conference Finals during his 1st season (those 61 wins set a franchise record). The Pacers of the mid-2000s were an interesting group (Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson, Jermaine O’Neal, and Jamaal Tinsley, among others), yet Carlisle was able to control their style of play and produce competitive teams. In four season with Indiana, Carlisle was 181-147.
After a year off, Carlisle joined the Dallas Mavericks. He took Dirk Nowitzki and a bunch of scrubs to the NBA Finals in 2011 and defeated the heavily favored Miami Heat (lead by LeBron and friends). Carlisle gets the nod over Doc because of two things: he has never been “fired” (we’re not sure what happened in Indiana) and he has made the conference finals with three different franchises.
2. Erik Spoelstra
Erik Spoelstra could be placed too high on this list. He benefited from having LeBron, Wade, and Bosh on his team the past four seasons, but he produced some amazing results. The Miami Heat have made four consectutive NBA Finals (winning 2) and have never missed the playoffs under Spoelstra. He has a .624 winning percentage, helped guide the Heat to a 27 game win streak in the 2012-2013 season, and was even an assistant on Miami’s 2006 championship team.
I like Spoelstra’s ability to adapt to the players he has. He designed plays for LeBron James in the post and has even helped mold Chris Bosh into a 3-point shooter. Spoelstra was overwhelmed during Year 1 of the Big 3, but he figured things out and they still made the Finals each season they were together. The true test for Spoelstra will be this and future seasons. Can he continue to field competitive teams or will he simply be “The Guy in Miami during the Big 3 Era”?
1. Gregg Popovich
Gregg Popovich is the best coach in the NBA
Do I even need to explain myself?
Popovich has been to 6 NBA Finals with the Spurs (winning 5), 9 Western Conferencee Finals, and owns a .686 winning percentage. He has won titles using a variety of offensive styles, too. The first three title teams were focused on getting the ball inside to Tim Duncan and David Robsinson, respectively. However, Popovich has adapted a more European style of play and has begun to embrace the 3-point shot more. This was artfully put on center stage during last year’s Finals as the Spurs’ ball movement and 3 point shooting destroyed the Miami Heat.
Tim Duncan has been with Popovich for his entire career, and I believe that Popovich has played a huge role in developing Duncan into the greatest PF of all-time (Yes, I said it.) Numerous players have come to the Spurs and instantly become better players because of Popovich. Tony Parker is quietly one of the league’s top PGs and Manu Ginobili is one of the top South American players of all-time. I could go on forever about how great Popovich is, so I’ll keep it short. He is one of the top 4-5 coaches in NBA history, and will remain atop the current NBA coaches until he retires.
I’d like to hear your thoughts and opinions. As always, feel free to comment or tweet me with anything you wanna say.
This article Top 5 current NBA coaches appeared first on isportsweb by Zachary Chandler