Even though it feels like it was only yesterday when the Milwaukee Bucks were hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy, the 2021-22 NBA season is quickly approaching. There’s still some time before the games begin, but that hasn’t stopped bettors and fans from looking ahead to the individual awards. While most awards are given to players, there’s also the NBA Coach of the Year trophy given to the league’s top bench boss. BetOnline is currently favoring the Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr to win it in 2021-22 at +800 odds.
The last two years have been a bit rough for Kerr. After coaching the Warriors to a dynasty in the 2010s, he had to deal with major injuries to both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson over the past two seasons. While Curry managed to play last year, Thompson was, once again, out for the entire campaign, which was one of the reasons why Golden State just missed out on the playoffs. With a fully healthy lineup ahead of the upcoming season, Kerr is in a prime position to win NBA Coach of the Year for the second time.
For starters, the Warriors are automatically a better team when both Curry and Thompson are playing. Golden State also has a pair of exciting rookies in Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, who should both give the lineup a boost. That’s not even to mention how sophomore James Wiseman is one year older and could be ready to take that next step in realizing his potential. All of these aspects should help the Warriors finish with a better record than the 39-33 one they posted last year. If that’s the case, Kerr will continue being the favorite to be named 21-22 NBA Coach of the Year.
2021-22 NBA Coach of the Year Odds
Odds via BetOnline as of Tuesday, August 18
- Steve Kerr (+800)
- Steve Nash (+900)
- Billy Donovan (+1200)
- Erik Spoelstra (+1200)
- Frank Vogel (+140)
- Monty Williams (+1400)
- Rick Carlisle (+1400)
- Jason Kidd (+1600)
- Nate McMillan (+1600)
- Quin Snyder (+1600)
Complete odds list is available at BetOnline.ag.
Steve Nash NBA Coach of the Year Odds
A lot of first-year coaches might struggle in their inaugural season. That wasn’t the case for Steve Nash, who coached the Brooklyn Nets to a 48-24 record — the organization’s best winning percentage (.667) since the mid-70s. It obviously helps that he had a ‘Big 3’ of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, but the fact is that someone still had to coach them all. Nevertheless, there’s still some room to improve and Nash’s +900 odds to win NBA Coach of the Year show that BetOnline thinks he can get it done.
One thing that the Nets had going against them last year was that Harden wasn’t traded to Brooklyn until after the season began. While that didn’t stop them from being one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, it did mean that Brooklyn’s ‘Big 3’ had less time to create chemistry than other teams. Nearly a year later, Harden, Durant and Irving should be even more dangerous together. That’s not even to mention how the Nets brought in guys like James Johnson and Patty Mills via free agency to help improve the roster. If Brooklyn reaches its potential this year, Nash could wind up with his first NBA Coach of the Year award.
Erik Spoelstra Contending for the Award
Erik Spoelstra has been the Miami Heat head coach since 2008 and despite the fact that he’s only had two sub-.500 seasons, he’s never be named NBA Coach of the Year. That may seem hard to believe, especially during the ‘Heatles’ era of the team, however, it’s true. Now, he has +1200 odds — tied for third-best — to win the award next season.
The fact is that Spoelstra does have a realistic shot at winning the award for the first time. The Heat finished with a 40-32 record last year, so they were already a solid team. However, they went out this offseason to add guys like Kyle Lowry and P.J. Tucker and will have a full year with Victor Oladipo this time around. Just on paper, Miami clear has a better team than last year’s squad, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them duke it out for one of the East’s top spots. Only time will tell if that’ll be good enough to get Spoelstra his first NBA Coach of the Year award.
