NBA Coaches with Best Odds to Win Award in 2019-20 (12-06-19)
We have reached the quarter mark of the 2019-20 NBA season. As the saying goes: Time flies when you’re having fun. The bad news is we’ve reached this juncture very rapidly, while the good news is there’s still a lot of basketball left to be played. Being an NBA head coach can be a thankless job at times, but someone must do it, right? Last week, the three coaches with the best odds of winning Coach of the Year honors included Frank Vogel, Nick Nurse, and Brad Stevens. Let’s look at an updated list of the coaches who are the frontrunners to win the award based on how their teams have performed this week.
Best Sportsbook 2019
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3.Erick Spoelstra (+500). Last week’s odds (N/A)
First, let’s congratulate Erick Spoelstra on making his way unto the list. After all, few people expected much from the Miami Heat coming into this season. However, the Heat have raised a few eyebrows, to say the least. Miami posted a 2-1 mark this week, including wins against the Brooklyn Nets and the Toronto Raptors. They are currently ranked 7th in points allowed per contest (105.7) and they are ranked 7th in defensive efficiency (104.4 points per 100 possessions). Not only that, but Miami has seven players scoring in double figures. All this has allowed this squad to get out to a 15-6 start, which is the third-best record in the Eastern Conference. This Heat aren’t in the running for winning the title this year, but coach Spoelstra deserves a lot of credit for how this team has performed thus far.
2.Brad Stevens (+400). Last week’s odds (+450)
Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens’ odds of winning the award may have dipped a bit from a week ago, but his team had a decent week. The Celtics only played two games this week, but they posted wins in both of those outings. The first win came against the lowly New York Knicks. It’s difficult to put much stock into that win because the Knicks have been awful for quite some time and that trend doesn’t appear to be changing for the better anytime soon. However, they did notch a win against a very good Heat team we just discussed. In that contest, the Celtics fell behind by eight points in the first quarter but scored at least 30 points in each subsequent frame en route to an easy 112-93 win. The victory helped the Celtics improve to a perfect 8-0 at home. Like the Heat, the Celtics have a balanced scoring attack as well, with six players averaging in double figures. Following an offseason that saw them lose Kyrie Irving, Al Horford, and Aron Baynes, the consensus was that this team would not be near the top of the conference. The Celtics have proven their critics wrong thus far and if Brad Stevens continues to have this level of success, he will continue to be in the running for the Coach of the Year award.
1.Nick Nurse (+300). Last week’s odds (+550)
Although Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse has jumped up to the No. 1 spot, his team did not have a good week by any stretch of the imagination. After posting an impressive 130-110 win over the Utah Jazz, the Raptors followed that up with a pair of double-digit losses against the Miami Heat (121-110) and Houston Rockets (119-109). Despite their recent setbacks, the Raptors have won seven of their last 10 overall and they boast a 15-6 record — the fourth-best mark in the Eastern Conference. Additionally, the Raptors are top-10 in both offense and defense. They finished fifth in both categories a year ago. Toronto also has the eighth-best scoring defense in the league. The team finished ninth in this category a year ago. The Raptors had a tough offseason, as they watched the likes of two-time MVP Kawhi Leonard bolt for the LA Clippers and Danny Green (who shot a career-best 45 percent from 3 last season) sign with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although both players were key components in the Raptors title run last season, the Raptors are right in the thick of the playoff hunt, thanks to Pascal Siakam, who leads the team in scoring with 25.0 points and 8.6 rebounds per contest. Should the Raptors finish with one of the top four records in the east, it would be hard not to make a case for Nick Nurse in the COTY race.
