NBA Coach Of The Year Betting Tips
The NBA Coach of the Year award is an annual award given to the coach considered to be the best in the entire National Basketball Association over the course of that season.
Many leading bookmakers offer customers the chance to back the best coaches in the sport for this prestigious award, with the market consistently updated throughout the entire NBA regular season.
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NBA Coach Of The Year Betting Tips
Before betting on the NBA Coach Of The Year award it is important to look at some of the trends from previous winners to get an idea of who is most likely to land the honour next.
Of course, winning his HUGELY important. Between 2003 and 2023, the team led by the Coach of the Year won an average of 58.6 games during the regular season, although the number is inflated a little by Steve Kerr guiding the Golden State Warriors to a 73-win season during that time.
By taking out the two seasons affected by COVID-19, the Coach of the Year has guided his team to 55 wins or more in each of the past seasons, while since 2003 only two coaches have won this award when their team won 50 regular season games or less.
Winning is not the absolute ‘be all’ and ‘end all’ though. Improvement is recognised. Between the start of the 2013/14 season and end of the 2021/22 campaign, the team coached by the award winner has increased its win total from the previous season by an average of 13.6 games.
It also helps a head coach to have a top star in his team! Over the previous 22 seasons, 18 of the coach of the year winners had a member of the All-NBA team in their starting roster. That means they had at least one of the league’s top five players on their roster that season.
One note of caution is being wary of backing last year’s winner to double up. Unlike the Most Valuable Player award, head coaches have had a hard time winning back-to-back awards. In the entire history of this honour no head coach has won it in back-to-back seasons, which is remarkable when you consider Phil Jackson led the Chicago Bulls to two three peats and did not win in back-to-back years.
And finally, rookie head coaches might want to be avoided – no first-year coach as managed to win this award since Doc Rivers took the honours back in 2023.
Previous NBA Coach Of The Year Winners
Three men have won the NBA Coach of the Year award a record-setting three times.
Don Nelson became the first man to achieve the feat when he won the award with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1983 and 1985, before winning it one final time with the Golden State Warriors in 1992.
Pat Riley then joined him in the record books in the 90s, becoming the first man to win the award with three different teams - Los Angeles Lakers (1990), New York Knicks (1993) and Miami Heat (1997).
Gregg Popovich then joined Nelson and Riley when he won the award as the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs in 2003, 2012 and 2014.
| Season | Coach (No. of times) | Team | Record | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1962–63 | Harry Gallatin | St. Louis Hawks | 48–32 | 0.6 |
| 1963–64 | Alex Hannum | San Francisco Warriors | 48–32 | 0.6 |
| 1964–65 | Red Auerbach | Boston Celtics | 62–18 | 0.775 |
| 1965–66 | Dolph Schayes | Philadelphia 76ers | 55–25 | 0.688 |
| 1966–67 | Johnny Kerr | Chicago Bulls | 33–48 | 0.407 |
| 1967–68 | Richie Guerin | St. Louis Hawks (2) | 56–26 | 0.683 |
| 1968–69 | Gene Shue | Baltimore Bullets | 57–25 | 0.695 |
| 1969–70 | Red Holzman | New York Knicks | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 1970–71 | Dick Motta | Chicago Bulls (2) | 51–31 | 0.622 |
| 1971–72 | Bill Sharman | Los Angeles Lakers | 69–13 | 0.841 |
| 1972–73 | Tom Heinsohn | Boston Celtics (2) | 68–14 | 0.829 |
| 1973–74 | Ray Scott | Detroit Pistons | 52–30 | 0.634 |
| 1974–75 | Phil Johnson | Kansas City-Omaha Kings | 44–38 | 0.537 |
| 1975–76 | Bill Fitch | Cleveland Cavaliers | 49–33 | 0.598 |
| 1976–77 | Tom Nissalke | Houston Rockets | 49–33 | 0.598 |
| 1977–78 | Hubie Brown | Atlanta Hawks (3) | 41–41 | 0.5 |
| 1978–79 | Cotton Fitzsimmons | Kansas City Kings (2) | 48–34 | 0.585 |
| 1979–80 | Bill Fitch (2) | Boston Celtics (3) | 61–21 | 0.744 |
| 1980–81 | Jack McKinney | Indiana Pacers | 44–38 | 0.537 |
| 1981–82 | Gene Shue (2) | Washington Bullets (2) | 43–39 | 0.524 |
| 1982–83 | Don Nelson | Milwaukee Bucks | 51–31 | 0.622 |
| 1983–84 | Frank Layden | Utah Jazz | 45–37 | 0.549 |
| 1984–85 | Don Nelson (2) | Milwaukee Bucks (2) | 59–23 | 0.72 |
| 1985–86 | Mike Fratello | Atlanta Hawks (4) | 50–32 | 0.61 |
| 1986–87 | Mike Schuler | Portland Trail Blazers | 49–33 | 0.598 |
| 1987–88 | Doug Moe | Denver Nuggets | 54–28 | 0.659 |
| 1988–89 | Cotton Fitzsimmons (2) | Phoenix Suns | 55–27 | 0.671 |
| 1989–90 | Pat Riley | Los Angeles Lakers (2) | 63–19 | 0.768 |
| 1990–91 | Don Chaney | Houston Rockets (2) | 52–30 | 0.634 |
| 1991–92 | Don Nelson (3) | Golden State Warriors (2) | 55–27 | 0.671 |
| 1992–93 | Pat Riley (2) | New York Knicks (2) | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 1993–94 | Lenny Wilkens | Atlanta Hawks (5) | 57–25 | 0.695 |
| 1994–95 | Del Harris | Los Angeles Lakers (3) | 48–34 | 0.585 |
| 1995–96 | Phil Jackson | Chicago Bulls (3) | 72–10 | 0.878 |
| 1996–97 | Pat Riley (3) | Miami Heat | 61–21 | 0.744 |
| 1997–98 | Larry Bird | Indiana Pacers (2) | 58–24 | 0.707 |
| 1998–99 | Mike Dunleavy | Portland Trail Blazers (2) | 35–15 | 0.7 |
| 1999–00 | Doc Rivers | Orlando Magic | 41–41 | 0.5 |
| 2000–01 | Larry Brown | Philadelphia 76ers (2) | 56–26 | 0.683 |
| 2001–02 | Rick Carlisle | Detroit Pistons (2) | 50–32 | 0.61 |
| 2002–03 | Gregg Popovich | San Antonio Spurs | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 2003–04 | Hubie Brown (2) | Memphis Grizzlies | 50–32 | 0.61 |
| 2004–05 | Mike D'Antoni | Phoenix Suns (2) | 62–20 | 0.756 |
| 2005–06 | Avery Johnson | Dallas Mavericks | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 2006–07 | Sam Mitchell | Toronto Raptors | 47–35 | 0.573 |
| 2007–08 | Byron Scott | New Orleans Hornets | 56–26 | 0.683 |
| 2008–09 | Mike Brown | Cleveland Cavaliers (2) | 66–16 | 0.805 |
| 2009–10 | Scott Brooks | Oklahoma City Thunder | 50–32 | 0.61 |
| 2010–11 | Tom Thibodeau | Chicago Bulls (4) | 62–20 | 0.756 |
| 2011–12 | Gregg Popovich (2) | San Antonio Spurs (2) | 50–16 | 0.758 |
| 2012–13 | George Karl | Denver Nuggets (2) | 57–25 | 0.695 |
| 2013–14 | Gregg Popovich (3) | San Antonio Spurs (3) | 62–20 | 0.756 |
| 2014–15 | Mike Budenholzer | Atlanta Hawks (6) | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 2015–16 | Steve Kerr | Golden State Warriors (3) | 73–9 | 0.89 |
| 2016–17 | Mike D'Antoni (2) | Houston Rockets (3) | 55–27 | 0.67 |
| 2017–18 | Dwane Casey | Toronto Raptors (2) | 59–23 | 0.72 |
| 2018–19 | Mike Budenholzer (2) | Milwaukee Bucks (3) | 60–22 | 0.732 |
| 2019–20 | Nick Nurse | Toronto Raptors (3) | 46–18[d] | 0.719 |
| 2020–21 | Tom Thibodeau (2) | New York Knicks (3) | 41–31 | 0.569 |
| 2021–22 | Monty Williams | Phoenix Suns (3) | 64–18 | 0.78 |
NBA Live Streaming
Not only can you bet on who will be crowned the best coach in the NBA, you can also watch the teams live in action thanks to bet365's live streaming service.
bet365's live streaming service is only available to eligible customers. To watch, all you need is a funded account or to have placed a bet in the last 24 hours. Please note that some geo restrictions do apply.
NBA Coach of the Year FAQs
What is the NBA Coach of the Year award?
The NBA Coach of the Year is given to the head coach perceived to have done the best job during the regular season.
Who won the NBA Coach of the Year award last season?
Phoenix Suns head coach Monty Williams won the NBA Coach of the Year award in 2021/22.
Who has won the most NBA Coach of the Year awards?
Three men have won NBA Coach of the Year three times – Don Nelson (Milwaukee Bucks, Golden State Warriors), Pat Riley (Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Miami Heat) and Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs).
