The NBA Coach of the Year odds for the 2024-25 regular season are bunched up near the top. Mark Daigneault of Oklahoma City is the most recent winner, as he took the Thunder to the #1 seed in the Western Conference. Will Daigneault go back-to-back, or will someone else take the Red Auerbach Trophy home?
There are a slew of excellent candidates in this season’s NBA Coach of the Year betting odds. I’m going to analyze the chances of the top favorites at NBA betting sites, as well as a couple of sleepers. At the end of the article, I’ll give you my NBA Coach of the Year prediction!
NBA Coach of the Year Odds for 2024-25
The following odds for NBA Coach of the Year are courtesy of Bovada.
| COACH | ODDS |
|---|---|
| Ime Udoka (Houston) | +900 |
| Taylor Jenkins (Memphis) | +900 |
| Jamahl Mosley (Orlando) | +1000 |
| Joe Mazzulla (Boston) | +1000 |
| Tom Thibodeau (New York) | +1000 |
| JJ Redick (Los Angeles Lakers) | +1200 |
| Nick Nurse (Philadelphia) | +1200 |
| Erik Spoelstra (Miami) | +1400 |
| Mark Daigneault (Oklahoma City) | +1400 |
| Chris Finch (Minnesota) | +1600 |
These NBA COTY odds are very interesting in that the top two favorites, Houston’s Ime Udoka (+900) and Memphis’ Taylor Jenkins (+900), both coach teams that missed the playoffs last season. These odds are forecasting that the Rockets and Grizzlies are set to make a jump into the playoff picture in the loaded Western Conference.
Still, don’t read too much into it since the prices are very close and there’s no clear favorite. Boston’s Joe Mazzulla (+1000) is near the top of the ranks as the coach of the defending NBA champion Celtics after finishing fourth in last season’s NBA Coach of the Year voting.
A word for Miami’s Erik Spoelstra (+1400) and San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich (+2000). These two are generally known as the best coaches in the NBA. However, Spoelstra’s Heat have some work to do after losing to Boston in the first round as a play-in team. Somehow, Spoelstra has never won this award.
Popovich, whose three NBA COTY wins ties him with Larry Brown, Don Nelson, and Pat Riley (Spoelstra’s current boss) for the most in league history, has a Spurs’ team that was better than only Portland in the West. They’ll need to take a massive leap in order for Popovich to win the award (although they do have Victor Wembanyama).
Finally, the Lakers hiring JJ Redick (+1200) was one of the biggest stories of the summer. It’s his first head-coaching job at a high level. While he is friends with LeBron James, the coach-player relationship is a completely unique dynamic. Redick’s odds for NBA Coach of the Year look overvalued right now, so stay away from him.
I will let you know what my prediction is later in this post, but if you already made your mind, Bovada offers odds on all NBA coaches. You can find the most recent NBA Coach of the Year odds by clicking Sports > Basketball > NBA Awards and League Leaders > Coach of the Year.
NBA Coach of the Year 2024-25 Top Favorites
The top of the list for 2024-25 NBA COTY odds is a crowded place. However, these are the three coaches have the best chance at separating themselves from the pack.
Ime Udoka, Houston (+900)
Udoka was the head coach in Boston from 2021-23 but he was suspended for all the second year due to a violation of team policies.
He was hired by Houston in April 2023 and turned the culture around for the Rockets. There was no structure before Udoka joined the team, and it seemed like the players just did what they wanted. He also brought a toughness, which showed in December 2023, when Udoka was ejected for getting into it with James.
Ime Udoka got ejected after having some words with Bron 👀 pic.twitter.com/GzNak5ZLzn
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 3, 2023
Houston was a much better defensive team under Udoka, going from 28th in points allowed in 2022-23, to 14th in 2023-24. The Rockets are now focusing their offense around center Alperen Sengun, who is called “Baby Jokić” for his similar game to Denver’s Nikola Jokić, a three-time MVP.
There are also high hopes for rookie Reed Sheppard. If the Rockets can get a respectable seed in the West, Udoka, who finished seventh in last year’s voting, will get many NBA Coach of the Year votes.
Taylor Jenkins, Memphis (+900)
Jenkins is in an interesting spot. Just two years ago, the Grizzlies finished second in the Western Conference and were due to be the next great team. However, they got derailed last year due to Ja Morant’s off-court issues and subsequent suspension, then the superstar got hurt when he returned. Desmond Bane and Brandon Clarke both suffered injuries, and Steven Adams was traded to Houston.
Memphis Grizzlies post-game sideline interview with Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr.
JJJ on Head Coach Taylor Jenkins pic.twitter.com/SC79gkMwl9
— Adam Pike (@GrizzliesFilm) January 6, 2024
The Memphis players love Jenkins and would run through a wall for him. However, the coach needs to have a firmer hand regarding his players, particularly Morant. If the star can stay out of trouble, and the team can stay healthy, they can once again challenge for a high seed. That would do wonders for Jenkins’ Coach of the Year NBA chances.
Jamahl Mosley, Orlando (+1000)
The Magic took a big leap in Mosley’s third season in charge of the team. They improved by 13 games to finish fifth in the Eastern Conference. The team eventually lost a tough seven-game series to Cleveland in the first round of the playoffs, but it was still a great season for Orlando, who were fourth in the league in points allowed.
Jalen Suggs getting some work in with his NBA coach (Orlando’s Jamahl Mosley) defending and his college coach (#Gonzaga’s Mark Few) watching on a couple feet away. pic.twitter.com/SC5gs93WDW
— Theo Lawson (@TheoLawson_SR) July 7, 2024
While Mosley didn’t play in the NBA, he’s a hands-on coach, working with Jalen Suggs over the summer. Mosley’s mission this season is to get more points on offense out of the Magic, who were 24th in points scored.
Outside of Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, you never knew how the Magic would get to 105 points per game. With the addition of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope from Denver, the Magic will be tough to get by on defense once again. However, Mosley has to coax more offense out of this team.
Top NBA Coach of the Year Sleepers
The odds for NBA coach of the Year are very close, so you should definitely consider some of the sleepers. They are not far off the favorite in terms of both prices and chances to win. I recommend the following head coaches.
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Daigneault’s odds for NBA Coach of the Year are severely undervalued here. The Thunder were the youngest team ever to claim a #1 seed in the NBA last season. They then romped to a sweep of New Orleans in the first round, before losing in six games to the eventual Western Conference champions, the Dallas Mavericks.
Mark Daigneault 🧠
SIMPLICITY THROUGH SOPHISTICATION
The playbook they showcase is simple but the details are extensive.
RUN THIS AT EVERY LEVEL 👇
MIDDLE G2G screening action.
OKC uses the middle third of the floor from MULTIPLE ANGLES (to fight switching) and will… pic.twitter.com/EVxJsj9Uls
— Chris Steed (@steeder10) August 20, 2024
The Thunder could be even better this season. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was Canada’s best player at the Olympics, after finishing second to Jokic in MVP voting.
Chet Holmgren has his rookie year under his belt, and Jalen Williams is in his third season. Oklahoma City had a great offseason, trading Josh Giddey to Chicago for Alex Caruso, and signing center Isaiah Hartenstein for size.
If OKC can get the #1 seed again, Daigneault is a strong candidate to win back-to-back NBA COY awards. No coach has ever done this before, though, which is the strongest argument against him. The expectations are high and the winner usually is a coach that exceeds them.
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Rivers, the 1999-2000 NBA Coach of the Year, took over for the Bucks after Adrian Griffin led them to a 30-13 start before getting fired. Milwaukee still finished third in the Eastern Conference, but it was a strange season.
The Griffin situation was weird, as it didn’t seem like he got along with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. Their defense was also terrible, as they were 25th in points allowed when Griffin was fired. They finished 21st, so that’s a start.
Milwaukee also had bad injury woes, as Khris Middleton played just 55 games, and then Lillard and Antetokounmpo got hurt before the playoffs.
Lillard played four games in a six-game loss to Indiana in the first round. If Milwaukee can stay healthy, they can challenge for the top spot in the East. They’ll need a Boston regression, so Rivers might have to pray for a jinx of his former team (one of his four former teams, anyway).
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Budenholzer won NBA Coach of the Year in 2014-15, and again in 2018-19. He also won the NBA title with Milwaukee in 2020-2021. He took a year off but was hired by Phoenix in the offseason to try to fix the floundering Suns.
With their “Big Three” of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal, Phoenix finished sixth in the Western Conference. It got worse in the playoffs, where the Suns were swept by Minnesota in the first round.
Budenholzer is known as an offensive coach and has Booker and Durant, who were both fantastic in helping the United States win gold at the Olympics. “Coach Bud” also has to try to get the best out of Beal, who looked a shell of himself at times last season.
The Suns made a couple of sneaky-good moves over the summer, signing Tyus Jones to a minimum deal. The point guard that can help Phoenix get into their offense. If the Suns are a top-three team in the West, watch out for Budenholzer’s NBA Coach of the Year odds in 2024-25.
NBA Coach of the Year Prediction and Betting Pick for 2024-25
Again, there are some superb candidates in the 2024–25 odds for NBA Coach of the Year. But I’m honestly shocked that Mark Daigneault’s odds are that high. In my opinion, he should be at least co-favorite to win the award again. I know that no coach has ever gone back-to-back for this award, but Daigneault has a considerable chance to do it again.
If OKC wins the top seed in the West again, in a conference that will be insanely competitive, he should be a strong candidate for the award. The betting value on him 2024-25 Coach of the Year odds are too good to pass on, so I’m going for it.
Where to Bet on the 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year Odds?
You can place your bet on Mark Daigneault’s Coach of the Year NBA odds, and more, at Bovada! There are more options available than what is listed above, as I only went for the top 10. The sportsbook covers all head coaches in the NBA.
You can also receive a welcome bonus of 100% up to $1,000 for new customers with code BV1000 . You can use this bonus to wager on more NBA Coach of the Year options, as well as other futures such as NBA Championship odds and NBA MVP odds.
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