NBA Coach of The Year: The favourites to win the award this season

#3 Michael Malone(Denver Nuggets)

Michael Malone was the assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2009.

Mike has taken the Nuggets from a .402 win percentage team(back when he started coaching Denver in 2015) to a highly impressive .680 West-leading powerhouse currently.

The Nuggets could barely make the playoffs last year, just inching in to take the 8th spot. But a lot has changed now.

They are currently sporting a defensive rating of 105.5(4th in the league) and an offensive rating of 110.8(6th in the league), which goes to show how complete they are as a package.

They've been an issue for every team they've played against, holding to the opposition to a league's 3rd best 103.4 points per game.

Despite the absence of Will Barton, Gary Harris, Michael Porter, and Isaiah Thomas due to injuries, Malone has done an awesome job at running an understaffed office at full efficiency and maximum output.

He had this to say following an emphatic 106-103 win against Toronto,

"....To gut this win out tonight, undermanned... to have enough poise down the stretch speaks volumes to a young team that is growing up and really maturing in big moments, and it's great to see," Malone said. "I am so proud of our guys for that."