33. Mike D’Antoni
Mike D’Antoni gets a lot of flack for having talented teams constantly underachieving. However, we must recognize the imprint D’Antoni has left on the game as a whole. His Phoenix Suns’ teams operated with the ‘7 seconds or less’ mantra. D’Antoni ushered in position-less basketball — as well as a style of play rooted in pace and efficiency. As we see today, D’Antoni’s methods have been widespread. He is without a doubt an offensive genius.
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32. Gene Shue
The 87-year-old out of Baltimore was an excellent player during his time with the Knicks, Pistons, and Bullets. However, Shue eventually made the move towards coaching once his playing career ended. Shue was an NBA coach for five franchises over the span of 24 years. He had two NBA Coach of the Year awards, and finished his career with 784 career victories. Shue was also widely regarded as one of the first coaches to emphasize three-point shooting.
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31. John MacLeod
MacLeod had a very long and fruitful coaching career. First starting with the Oklahoma Sooners, MacLeod ultimately nabbed head coaching jobs with the Suns, Mavericks, and Knicks. This was then followed by a nine-year stint at Notre Dame, and assistant coaching jobs with the Suns, Nuggets, and Warriors. During this time, MacLeod won 707 career games. He led his teams to the playoffs on 11 separate occasions.
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30. Bill Russell
Some younger NBA fans may fail to realize that Russell won two NBA Championships as a player-coach with the Celtics. Additionally, Russell became the first black coach in NBA history. During his time in Beantown, Russell led the Celtics to two titles in three years. Later in his career, he was the head coach for the Seattle SuperSonics and the Sacramento Kings.
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29. Dick McGuire
While his numbers as a head coach weren’t overly spectacular, McGuire gets special notoriety for being arguably the most beloved Knick of all-time. Not only was he a 5-time All-Star as a player for the franchise, but he also led them to three-straight Finals, and was the team’s head coach for four seasons.
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28. Rick Carlisle
The Jim Carrey lookalike can actually coach the game of basketball quite well. In today’s game, Carlisle is one of the most respected minds across the NBA. His teams are always well-coached, fundamentally sound, and play the game with a nuanced acumen not normally found in the current generation. Since 2001, Carlisle has taken his teams to the playoffs 12 out of a possible 17 years. This includes an NBA Championship during the 2010-11 season with the Dallas Mavericks.
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27. Cotton Fitzsimmons
Aside from having the best name in the history of sports, Lowell ‘Cotton’ Fitzsimmons was an excellent coach. We give him a ton of credit for being able to excel at all levels. Fitzsimmons coached both on the junior college and collegiate levels before eventually becoming a longtime NBA coach. Beginning in 1970, Fitzsimmons coached for nearly 30 years in the association. This included winning two NBA Coach of the Year awards. Fitzsimmons ranks No. 15 all-time in career wins.
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26. Les Harrison
Harrison was a trailblazer within the sport of basketball. He began his own professional franchise called the Rochester Royals. Ultimately, this team transitioned from the NBL (National Basketball League) to the NBA. From there, Harrison led the Royals to an NBA title in 1951. He holds the distinction in signing the first African-American professional basketball player (Dolly King). Harrison became a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1980.
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25. Erik Spoelstra
“Spo” deserves a ton of credit for his career with the Miami Heat. He’s a success story as a youngster who toiled away first as a video coordinator — and then ultimately worked his way up the ladder into a coaching position. Aside from winning multiple titles with the Heat, Spoelstra had to manage the circus that was LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwyane Wade. If you get the stamp of approval from Pat Riley, you’re good enough for this list.
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24. Rick Adelman
Adelman is one of the NBA’s best coaches to never win an NBA Title. From 1983-2014, Adelman held coaching positions within the league. His two most notable tenures came with the Sacramento Kings and the Portland Trail Blazers. In Sacramento, he was the architect of the awesome teams featuring Chris Webber, Vlade Divac, Peja Stojakovic, and others. In Portland, he led the Trail Blazers to two Finals appearances. Adelman notched 1,042 victories over the course of his career.
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23. Bill Sharman
Bill Sharman was a fantastic player. Those who love the Boston Celtics fondly remember Sharman as a heady yet highly skilled competitor. As a coach, Sharman wasn’t too shabby, either. Sharman-coached teams appeared in the Finals on five separate occasions. He won an ABA Championship with Utah, and an NBA title with the Lakers. Sharman finished his coaching career with a sparkling .569 winning percentage.
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22. Tom Heinsohn
Tom Heinsohn is green and white royalty. For all 17 of the Celtics’ championships, Heinsohn is the only one to be involved with each and every ring — whether as a coach, player, or commentator. As a coach, Heinsohn led the Celtics to six playoff appearances, and two NBA Championships. He finished his coaching career with an impressive .619 winning percentage.
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21. Billy Cunningham
Cunningham is firmly embedded into the fabric of the 76ers’ franchise. After playing with the team for nearly a decade, Cunningham became Philadelphia’s head coach. Buoyed by the likes of Moses Malone and Dr. J (Julius Erving), Cunningham led Philly to eight-straight playoff appearances, two division titles, and an NBA Championship during the 1982-83 season.
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20. Rudy Tomjanovich
Rudy T was no slouch as a player (five-time NBA All-Star), but he’s perhaps best known for his successful coaching career. Shortly after calling his playing career quits, Tomjanovich joined the Houston Rockets staff as a scout. He became the full-time head coach in 1992, and would go on to coach the Rockets for 12 seasons — leading the Rockets to back-to-back NBA titles in ’94 and ’95. Always known for his feisty play as a player, Tomjanovic was an energetic leader who was never afraid to speak his mind.
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19. Alex Hannum
Hannum’s playing career was non-consequential. He went undrafted in 1948, and proceeded to average just 6.0 PPG and 4.5 RPG over his 10-year career. It wasn’t until after he retired from playing that Hannum found his calling. In his first year as the coach of the St. Louis Hawks, Hannum led the team to the NBA Finals. The very next year, the Hawks won their first and only NBA title in the franchise’s history. Over his 30-year coaching career, Hannum coached 13 eventual Hall of Famers including Wilt Chamberlain, Rick Barry, and Bob Pettit.
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18. Dick Motta
If you’ve never heard of Motta before, maybe you’ve heard of one his understudies. Motta’s expansive coaching tree includes Phil Jackson, Jerry Sloan, Rick Adelman, Scott Brooks, Danny Ainge, Mitch Kupchak, Mark Jackson, and Jason Kidd. He was an excellent coach in his own right — having led the Washington Bullets to an NBA title in 1978. His effect on the game has been felt by multiple generations of top-tier coaches.
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17. George Karl
Had one of Karl’s teams won an NBA title, he would be much higher on this list. Unfortunately, Karl was never able to achieve his ultimate goal, but his career shouldn’t be minimized in any regard. Karl is one of the pillars of coaching consistency. From 1991-2013, Karl missed the postseason just once, and reached four Conference Finals and one NBA Finals. With the sixth most wins of among NBA head coaches, Karl’s spot among the all-time greats cannot be denied.
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16. Doc Rivers
Rivers is one of the better motivators the game has seen. Known as a “player’s coach”, Rivers is well-respected around the league and has been a consistent winner for the past decade. His greatest feat remains the 2008 championship winning season with the Boston Celtics. Rivers did a masterful job of bringing together a brand new team in just one year. Though he hasn’t reached the NBA Finals since 2010, he’s still one of the top coaches in the league today.
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15. K.C. Jones
Jones was an excellent role player for eight championship winning teams as a player with the Boston Celtics. Shortly after his playing career was done, Jones earned a role on the Celtics coaching staff and eventually took over the head coaching position in 1983. In eight full seasons as coach, Jones’ Celtics made the NBA Finals five times — winning twice. His coaching career was short lived — ending abruptly in Seattle in 1992 — but Jones made a mighty impact.
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14. Jack Ramsay
Ramsay dominated at every level he coached. After leading St. Joseph’s to a Final Four appearance in 1961, Ramsay took over as the head coach for the 76ers in 1968. Following solid runs with Philadelphia and Buffalo, Ramsay joined the Trail Blazers staff and eventually led the team to a title in 1977. At the time of his retirement, Ramsay had more combined college and professional wins than any coach in history. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992.
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13. Jerry Sloan
Sloan had a short stint as the coach of the Bulls before Phil Jackson joined the club. However, Sloan’s greatest accomplishments occurred when he was named the Utah Jazz lead man in 1988. Sloan and the Jazz would go on to reach the postseason in each of his first 15 seasons as coach. The Jazz enjoyed ten 50-plus win seasons during that span, and made two runs to the NBA Finals. They were eventually stuffed by the Jackson, Jordan, Pippen-era Bulls, but Sloan took over for a desolate franchise and took an all-time great team led by the best player of all-time to the brink two years in a row.
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12. Bill Fitch
Though he’s been passed by a number of coaches since, Fitch retired with the most games coached and second-most games won in NBA history. Fitch was the head man during the Celtics NBA Finals run in 1981, and is a two-time Coach of the Year recipient (’76 with the Cavs and ’80 with the Celtics). Fitch had a knack for turning lowly teams around, as each team he joined won more games in Fitch’s first year as coach than they had the previous season.
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11. John Kundla
Before the Celtics took over the league, Kundla and his Minneapolis Lakers were the first NBA dynasty. Kundla won five NBA Championship’s as the Lakers coach from 1949-1954. He would go on to coach five more seasons and never managed to win a sixth title, but he remains one of the most successful postseason coaches in NBA history (.632 playoff winning percentage).
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10. Lenny Wilkens
Currently the second winningest coach of all-time, Wilkens’ 1,332 career wins speaks for itself. Wilkens coached for six different teams over his coaching career, with his most successful stint coming with the Seattle Supersonics. In ’78, Wilkens led the franchise to its first NBA Finals appearance. The next year, Wilkens and the Sonics won the title — the franchise’s lone championship. Wilkens has coached more games than anybody in NBA history and was also the first ever coach to win 1,000 games.
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9. Don Nelson
Fans of today’s up-tempo, three-point centric, guard-heavy style has Don Nelson to thank. Nelson was at the forefront for the modern game — emphasizing shooting and speed over sheer size. He coached a number of good teams, but the two that most encapsulate his style as a coach are the Run ‘TMC’ Warriors of the 90s and the ‘We Believe’ Warriors of the 2000s. Each team played an enjoyable brand of basketball and were tremendously difficult to stop on the offensive end. Had he been handed a bit more talent, Nelson could have won multiple titles with his innovative attack.
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8. Larry Brown
Brown’s resume can stand toe-to-toe with the game’s all-time greats. Brown is the only coach ever to win both an NBA and an NCAA title (Brown also won an ABA title as a player). He has been named Coach of the Year at the professional and collegiate level, and has succeeded with a variety of teams. Since 2006, Brown has been a member of both the pro Basketball Hall of Fame and the College Basketball Hall of Fame.
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7. Steve Kerr
You can’t argue with results. Though Kerr has had the fortunate of coaching one of the most talented teams of all-time, his ability to make adjustments and keep his team ready despite a prolonged period of winning is impressive. Though at times the Warriors have slogged through the regular season, they rarely look complacent when games really matter. He boasts the greatest winning percentage ever (.785) and hasn’t backed down from matchups with more experienced coaches in the past. If he continues at his current pace, Kerr might be able to climb even further up this ranking.
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6. Red Holzman
The Bronx native brought a certain bravado and confidence to the coaching bench that hadn’t truly been seen before. Holzman was wise beyond his years and regaled as a coaching genius during his tenure with the New York Knicks. One of the few people to win a title as both a coach and a player, Holzman knew what it took to win at the highest level from either perspective. His Knicks would go on to win two titles (’70 and ’73), and Holzman was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1985.
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5. Chuck Daly
The architect of the ‘Bad Boy’ Pistons of the 80s, Daly is a vastly underrated coach in modern times. Daly was integral in both of Detroit’s NBA title runs in ’89 and ’90, and the team could have won even more had the Detroit front office not broken the team up. Daly is also an accomplished Olympic coach having coached the 1992 Dream Team who won the gold medal in Barcelona.
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4, Pat Riley
Riley landed the head coaching job for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1981. Thus, the ‘Showtime’ Lakers were born. Led by all-time great point guard Magic Johnson, Riley’s up-tempo offense took the league by storm as the Lakers would win four titles in the decade. Riley used his newly found star power to angle the lead spot with the New York Knicks, leading the team to its first NBA Finals appearance in over twenty years. Though he never won a championship in New York, Riley eventually picked up his fifth and final ring coaching Shaquille O’Neal and a young Dwyane Wade to the 2006 NBA Championship. Riley continues to be around basketball to this day and is currently acting as President of Basketball Operations for the Heat. At 74 years old, Riley remains one of the best minds in the game.
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3. Gregg Popovich
A defining factor in any coach is their ability to get the best out of what they have. Sure, the Spurs have had all-time level talents over the years in Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and Kawhi Leonard. However, Popovich’s greatness lies in his ability to still be competitive even when he doesn’t have those star players. The Spurs haven’t missed the NBA Playoffs since 1997 — the year before Duncan was drafted. Since then, they’ve won five NBA Championships and have seen their entire core turn over more times than anybody in San Antonio can count. No matter the starters for the Spurs on any given night, Popovich gives his team a chance to win. That’s all you can ask out of a coach.
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2. Red Auerbach
A pioneer for NBA coaching, Auerbach is synonymous with winning. The long-time Celtics coach and executive won nine championships during his head coaching career — including eight in a row from 1959-1966. Countless coaches have cited Auerbach as an inspiration to join the profession, and many of Auerbach’s teachings are still used today. With a lifetime winning percentage of .662 (938-479), it’s not all that hard to see why Auerbach is put in such high regard.
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1. Phil Jackson
Nobody won at the highest level with more regularity than The Zen Master. Jackson parlayed a reasonable NBA playing career into a coaching job — eventually winning the head coach position for the Chicago Bulls in 1989. Jackson would go on to win eleven titles in his career as coach of the Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. Of course, it helps to have Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O’Neal. However, Jackon’s best trait as a coach was perhaps his ability to manage the personalities of his stars and other colorful characters such as Dennis Rodman or Metta World Peace. The ‘King of Rings’ reigns supreme.
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