2021-22 NBA Awards: S-and-S Staff Roundtable

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MIAMI, FLORIDA – OCTOBER 04: Head Coach Nate McMillan of the Atlanta Hawks in action against the Miami Heat during the preseason game at FTX Arena on October 04, 2021 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2021 NBAE (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

2021-22 NBA Awards Predictions: Coach of the Year

Dylan Jackson (DJ): Nate McMillan, Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks are going to be a really fun team to watch this season. They have an incredible amount of young talent, and the Hawks were 26-11 under McMillan last season. If the Hawks end up within the top-3 seeds of the Eastern Conference, this award should go to McMillan.

Stephen Sears (SS): Monty Williams, Phoenix Suns

Last year’s Western Conference champions have a lot of expectations as they return this season. Monty Williams gained a lot of respect last season for orchestrating Phoenix’s success and some could say he was snubbed from the award. If he can replicate that success in this upcoming season he will surely be in the discussion to win this award.

Jacob Phillips (JP): Nate McMillan, Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks gave McMillian a 4-year deal in the offseason. When McMillan first took over as the Hawks head coach they were 14-20 and the 11 seed. He quickly got the team to turn it around and took Atlanta to the Eastern Conference Finals. If they are as good as I think they’ll be, then McMillian will be a clear candidate for coach of the year and could come away with the award.

George Mentzos (GM): Nate McMillan, Atlanta Hawks

The Coach Of The Year more often than not in recent years goes to a team that was expected to be good but ends up being great. Thibs last year was this exception, and with the lack of buzz around Atlanta because they didn’t make any major additions to last year’s awesome roster, just a course correction in terms of regular season health will be enough for them to compete for the top spots in the eastern conference. Nate is well positioned to win this award unless there’s big overperformance from the mid tier in the West in my opinion.

Evan Birchmore (EB): Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat

The Miami Heat were one of the big winners of the offseason, acquiring Kyle Lowry to add to their core of Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. Spoelstra is a proven successful coach but has never won the Coach of the Year award, and it feels like he is due to win it at some point.

Jason Huber (JH): Billy Donovan, Chicago Bulls

After missing the playoffs his first year as the Bulls head coach, Billy Donovan will have a lot more talent to work with this season and has the perfect opportunity to prove why he should be recognized as one of the better coaches in the NBA. Despite the additions of DeMar DeRozan, Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, many people are still sleeping on Chicago. If Donovan can help lead the Bulls to a top 4-5 seed, he should win this award.

Michael Wylie (MW): Taylor Jenkins, Memphis Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzlies are my surprise team of the year. There is tons of hype around Western Conference teams yet Memphis seems to be an afterthought. The Penn alum has an up-tempo system that will allow for Ja Morant to thrive and lead the Grizzlies to the playoffs for a second straight year. Look for Memphis to be the surprise team of the season stealing a top-5 seed in the loaded West.

Quinn Everts (QE): Ime Udoka, Boston Celtics

Last year it seemed like the roof was on fire in Boston, but Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown should come with the extinguishers this year and settle things down. With their two stars surrounded by serviceable role players, the Celtics should regain their footing in 2021-22. Seldom do first-year coaches inherit the talent level that Udokah will command in Beantown, and C’s players appear to be buying into Udoka’s sales pitch. A first-year head coach leading a big-market team to a top-four seed will impress the league, and earn Udoka COY honors.

Josh Flenniken (JF): Taylor Jenkins, Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies have quietly become one of the deepest teams in the NBA. If Ja Morant makes the all-star leap and co-star Jaren Jackson Jr. can stay healthy through the season, they have the supporting cast to sneak into a surprise top-4 seed in the West. Jenkins has been a steady guide in the post Grit ’n Grind era, and a breakout season from the young Grizzlies squad a la last year’s Phoenix Suns could highlight that on the national stage.

Final tally: Nate McMillan (ATL) 3, Taylor Jenkins (MEM) 2, Monty Williams (PHX) 1, Erik Spoelstra (MIA) 1, Billy Donovan (CHI) 1, Ime Udoka (BOS) 1

Takeaway: No coach got the majority of votes here, but everyone on the team really seems to favor the possibility of what both Atlanta and Memphis could achieve this season with presumed growth from their respective rosters.

Side note: the thought of Billy Donovan winning Coach of the Year is as haunting as it is relevant.

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