One of the most tightly bunched markets comes in the Coach of the Year chase, where the favorite is listed at +900, but eight other coaches are priced at +1400 or below. Here is BetMassachusetts.com’s breakdown on the state of that race heading into the season.
Former Celtics head coach and current Rockets boss Ime Udoka leads the way after helping Houston orchestrate a 19-win improvement in his first season at the helm last year. The Rockets are expected to progress again this season as their young core continues to develop, with their preseason over/under win total set at 43.5. A postseason berth for the first time since 2020 will be essential to Udoka’s case, as only one person has ever won Coach of the Year on a non-playoff team.
Udoka’s replacement in Boston, Joe Mazzulla is riding high off a championship with the Boston Celtics, but he will have to meet lofty expectations to capture the award. At 58.5 wins, the Celtics preseason over/under is the highest of any team in the league since the 2018-19 season. Additionally, no team has covered a preseason projection that high since the 73-win 2015-16 Warriors. That could put Mazzulla in a tough position despite Boston’s immense talent, as the award tends to favor coaches whose team overperforms.
Joining Mazzulla at +1000, Orlando’s Jamahl Mosley has helped drive the Magic’s growth since joining the team before the 2021-22 season. Orlando won 22 games in his first year before jumping to 34 wins in year two and skyrocketing to 47 wins and a playoff bid last season. That effort spurred Mosley to a second-place finish in last year's Coach of the Year voting, but oddsmakers are expecting a similar level of success this year with the team’s preseason win total holding at 47.5.
The rest of the top candidates largely come from last year's playoff teams as Memphis’ Taylor Jenkins and San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich are the only coaches in the top 12 besides Udoka to miss the postseason in 2024. Popovich is also the lone coach in the top 12 whose team projects to go under .500 based on preseason win totals. Lakers coach JJ Reddick is the sole rookie coach on the list.
First presented following the 1962-63 season, 40 separate coaches have claimed Coach of the Year, averaging 54.1 wins per award winning season. Nine active coaches have won the award, with Mike Brown, Tom Thibodeau, Mike Budenholzer and Gregg Popovich earning it multiple times. Brown’s award in 2023 was the first time since 2007 that a coach won less than 50 games in a non-shortened season and still took home the trophy.
Were Popovich to win again, it would put him in sole possession of most Coach of the Year awards at four, breaking his tie with Hall of Famers Don Nelson and Pat Riley. Nelson and Riley are two of the ten men to win the award with multiple franchises, while Popovich is the last coach to win Coach of the Year in a season his team won the NBA title (2014), something that has only happened six times in league history.
No one has ever won the award in back-to-back seasons, something to keep in mind at MA betting apps this season.
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