- Brad Stevens
Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics is a relative unknown to the casual basketball fan. But Stevens is putting together a solid season with a team whose best player (Isiah Thomas) was deemed not well enough for the Phoenix Suns. Brad is relatively new to the NBA and is untested, but he must be doing something right the way he has this untalented Celtics team playing.
- Erik Spoelstra
Erik Spoelstra started as a video coordinator in 1995. Since then he has climbed the ranks and became head coach of one of the most famed organizations in the NBA. Spoelstra became head coach of the Miami Heat in 2008. As everyone knows, two short years later LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh joined forces in Miami. Though it was widely regarded as LeBron’s team, Spoelstra took this team to three consecutive NBA Finals, winning just one. Though Coach Spo may have been handed the best job in the NBA, he also performed as well as anyone could hope in managing these three huge personalities.
Every coach on this list, with the exception of Brad Stevens, has won an NBA championship. They’ve been a part of some of the most historically good teams we’ve ever seen assembled. Great teams don’t always win championships. No matter how many all-stars are on the court, without proper guidance and the correct system, there is no championship. Teams become great not because of the great players, but because of the cohesiveness of the unit. A coach’s job is to make a group of guys work together as one. And that’s exactly what the guys on this list do. And that’s why they’re some of the greatest coaches we have ever seen.
–Michael Hersey
