Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault is the betting favorite to win the 2024 NBA Coach of the Year at +195 odds, according to BetMGM. Chris Finch from the Minnesota Timberwolves is his closest competition at +250 odds.
Heading into the All-Star break, both the Thunder and Timberwolves are in a tight race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
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Daigneault Top Choice
The Thunder began a rebuild back in 2020-21 when they hired Daigneault. Their young squad has been gradually improving during Daigneault’s tenure, and the Thunder are on pace to finally return to the playoffs.
The Thunder (37-17) have the second-best record in the Western Conference and the third-best overall record in the NBA through the All-Star break.
Thanks to their stellar run in the first half of the season, the Thunder are well represented in the NBA awards department.
All-Star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the second favorite at BetMGM to win the 2024 MVP. Center Chet Holmgren, the former No. 2 pick in last year’s draft, is the second favorite to win the 2024 Rookie of the Year. Meanwhile, Daigneault is at the top of BetMGM’s awards board at +195 odds to win the Coach of the Year.
Daigneault was the runner-up in last season’s voting for Coach of the Year behind 2023 winner Mike Brown from the Sacramento Kings.
Finch Chirping to Win Award
Finch was named as one of the two head coaches at this year’s All-Star game because the Timberwolves boast the top record in the Western Conference at 39-16.
He took over as the head coach of the Timberwolves in the middle of the 2020-21 season. He led the Timberwolves to consecutive playoff appearances in the last two seasons via the Western Conference Play-In Tournament. However, they were eliminated in the first round in back-to-back postseasons.
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Other Candidates to Win Award
J.B. Bickerstaff is the son of former NBA head coach Bernie Bickerstaff. He won only 22 games in his first full season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and bounced back in 2021-22 with a 44-38 record, but they failed to secure a spot in the playoffs when they were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament.
The Cavs went 51-31 last season and secured the #4 seed in the playoffs, but were picked off by the New York Knicks in the opening round.
This season, the Cavs have a 36-17 record at the All-Star break. They’re the second-best team in the Eastern Conference and have the fourth-best record in the NBA.
Bickerstaff is the third favorite on Caesar’s awards board to win the Coach of the Year a +450 odds.
After a sluggish start, including a rough adjustment period following the James Harden trade, the Los Angeles Clippers (36-17) are one of the top five teams in the NBA right now. The Clippers are 28-7 since the start of December. If the season ended today, the Clippers would secure the #3 playoff seed in the Western Conference. Head Coach Ty Lue is a big reason for that.
Lue is a former NBA point guard who won two titles with the Los Angeles Lakers at the turn of the century. As a head coach, he won a championship with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavs in 2016.
Lue is the fourth betting favorite on the board to win the 2024 Coach of the Year at +500 odds.
Carlisle, Thibodeau Seek Another COY Award
Rick Carlisle won the NBA Coach of the Year over two decades ago with the 2002 Detroit Pistons. As the current head coach of the Indiana Pacers, Carlisle led his young squad to a trip to the finals of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament. Despite an impressive performance in the tournament, the L.A. Lakers won the NBA Cup and the Pacers were the runner up.
The Pacers (31-25) would lock up the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference if the season ended today. Carlisle is +1800 odds to win a second Coach of the Year award.
Tom Thibodeau initially won the prestigious Coach of the Year award with the 2011 Chicago Bulls and snagged a second award in 2021 with the New York Knicks. The Knicks (33-22) have the fourth-best record in the Eastern Conference despite injuries to three starters on their frontline. Thibodeau is +2500 odds to win Coach of the Year for a third time, which would put him in an elite club with Greg Popovich, Pat Riley, and Don Nelson.
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