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Heading into Week 6 of the 2021-22 NBA season, many action unfolded in the last week. A few of the dominant teams have started to separate themselves from the rest of the league in the standings. Stephen Curry is now the sweeping MVP favorite across the league, while Kevin Durant has slipped to second in the race.
The Charlotte Hornets have stabilized themselves after a terrible Western Conference road trip, and are now on a five-game win streak. Meanwhile, the Washington Wizards are one of the biggest surprises in the NBA. They are 10-5 to start the season, and have shown incredible chemistry to begin the season.
Coach Wes Unseld Jr. has done a fabulous job integrating the championship-winning players like Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope into the system with Spencer Dinwiddie and Bradley Beal.
The Brooklyn Nets are atop the Eastern Conference standings with a 12-5 record, but haven't looked like a championship team yet. They have faced a bevy of 'easy' opponents, but have lost against strong teams like the Heat, Warriors, Bucks and Bulls.
James Harden has looked like a shadow of his illustrious self, while Kyrie Irving's absence has exacerbated the situation as the injuries pile on. Head coach Steve Nash spoke about where he thinks the Nets stand in the league after their blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors, saying:
"Well, I just don't think we're in that category yet...We got a lot of work to do. We're trying to improve as a group, get better, and hopefully, we can find a way to overcome some of our deficiencies by the end of the year."
Hence coach Nash doesn't make our week's NBA Coach of the Year power rankings. So without further ado, let's have a look at the five men who have done so:
#5 Billy Donovan
Previous week's NBA Coach of the Year Power Ranking - 4th (↓1)
Last Week: Games played - 4; Games won - 3; Games lost - 1
Overall: Games played - 16; Games won - 11; Games lost - 5
Offensive Rating: 110.7 (7th of 30)
Defensive Rating: 105.4 (9th of 30)
Average Points Scored: 108.8 (11th of 30)
Average Points Conceded: 103.6 (8th of 30).
The Chicago Bulls are rolling right now, and coach Billy Donovan deserves a lot of credit. Many NBA GMs and scouts voted ahead of the season that DeMar DeRozan's addition was surprising, and would not work out.
But so far the move has worked wonders. Both Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan are having MVP-caliber seasons, and the Bulls' offense is one of the most fluid in the NBA.
Coach Donovan has implemented a system of ball movement and great defense. Alex Caruso has been an excellent Sixth Man for the team. The Bulls have managed to win games despite the absence of their starting center Nikola Vucevic.
The Bulls have been incredible in fourth quarters. They have won against tougher opponents like the Nets, Nuggets, Lakers, Clippers and Jazz, among others.
#4 Erik Spoelstra
Previous week's NBA Coach of the Year Power Ranking - 5th (↑1)
Last Week: Games played - 4; Games won - 1; Games lost - 3
Overall: Games played - 12; Games won - 7; Games lost - 5
Offensive Rating: 112.8 (4th of 30)
Defensive Rating: 104.5 (6th of 30)
Average Points Scored: 110.4 (6th of 30)
Average Points Conceded: 102.3 (5th of 30).
The Miami Heat are back to winning ways. They lost three straight games on their West Coast road trip, but have now won their last four in a row. Coach Erik Spoelstra's team has managed to win despite dealing with a ton of injuries. Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler has been a candidate in the early NBA MVP race, and is having one of the best seasons of his career.
Moreover, coach Spoelstra has done an amazing job with Tyler Herro's role and rotation. The 21-year-old is currently the runaway favorite for the Sixth Man of the Year award, and is also in contention for the Most Improved Player award.
He is scoring the second-highest points in the team, averaging career-highs in all three major statistics. Herro is averaging 21.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists while shooting 39% from downtown on 7.2 attempts per game.
#3 Quin Snyder
Previous week's NBA Coach of the Year Power Ranking - 3rd (-)
Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 2; Games lost - 1
Overall: Games played - 15; Games won - 10; Games lost - 5
Offensive Rating: 113.4 (1st of 30)
Defensive Rating: 104.1 (4th of 30)
Average Points Scored: 111.4 (3rd of 30)
Average Points Conceded: 102.3 (4th of 30).
The Utah Jazz have consistently been one of the most dominant teams in the NBA Western Conference. They currently hold a 10-5 record, and are third in the conference standings.
The Jazz are one of just three teams in the NBA who are top five in both offensive and defensive ratings. Moreover, the Jazz have improved their net rating from last week. They were third in offensive and sixth in defensive rating, but are now first and fourth in those categories, respectively.,Salt Lake City and Vivint Arena were voted as the best home-court advantage in the NBA in the league's 2021 Annual GM Survey. The Utah Jazz currently have the third-best home record in the NBA at 6-2. Donovan Mitchell is 13th in the league in scoring 24.3 points per game. Meanwhile, Rudy Gobert is, once again, leading the DPOY race.
#2 Monty Williams
Previous week's NBA Coach of the Year Power Ranking - 2nd (-)
Last Week: Games played - 2; Games won - 2; Games lost - 0
Overall: Games played - 15; Games won - 12; Games lost - 3
Offensive Rating: 109.4 (11th of 30)
Defensive Rating: 103.7 (3rd of 30)
Average Points Scored: 110.7 (4th of 30)
Average Points Conceded: 104.9 (10th of 30).
The Phoenix Suns have quietly embarked on an impressive 11-game winning streak, the longest in the NBA at the moment. They have taken care of business and defeated teams they were supposed to beat. The Suns started the season losing three of their first four games, but have won every match since then.
The Suns had abysmal defense to begin the season, especially from the perimeter. They were ranked 30th in three-pointers allowed and 20th in defensive rating. They are now third in defensive rating. So coach Monty Williams deserves his due credit.
#1 Steve Kerr
Previous week's NBA Coach of the Year Power Ranking - 1st (-)
Last Week: Games played - 4; Games won - 3; Games lost - 1
Overall: Games played - 16; Games won - 14; Games lost - 2
Offensive Rating: 113.0 (2nd of 30)
Defensive Rating: 100.1 (1st of 30)
Average Points Scored: 113.9 (1st of 30)
Average Points Conceded: 100.9 (2nd of 30).
Steve Kerr won his first Coach of the Year award in 2015-16 when he coached the Golden State Warriors to an NBA-record 73-9 season. He might win his second award this season.
The Warriors are first in offensive rating and points scored and second in points conceded and defensive rating. They have absolutely obliterated their opponents in third quarters, outscoring them by 124 points, the highest in the league by a margin of 74 points.
The Golden State Warriors are ranked first in a bevy of different categories in the NBA. That includes three-point shooting, assists rate, fast break points per game, eFG% (effective field goal), TS% (true shooting), among others.
Stephen Curry is the sweeping favorite for the MVP award this season, and the rest of the team is operating with incredible chemistry. They have defeated the LA Lakers, Brooklyn Nets and Chicago Bulls in their first 16 games, and have a league-best 8-1 home record. They are leading the NBA with a 14-2 record and are projected to 65 games.
Guess the Lakers players!
