NBA Power Rankings: Top 10 coaches heading into the 2020-21 season

#6 Steve Kerr - Golden State Warriors

Steve Kerr

The only reason Steve Kerr is so low in the NBA Power Rankings is that the Golden State Warriors had an underwhelming performance last season. Steve Kerr is a legendary NBA figure; he has won 5 titles as a player and 3 as a coach. Kerr holds the record for the best win percentage by any coach in NBA history (min. 400 games).

Steve Kerr enters Game 6 with a 6-1 record in elimination games. His .857 win percentage in such games is tied for the best in NBA history [minimum 5 games] (via @ESPNStatsInfo) WATCH Game 6 of the #NBAFinals LIVE on Channel 2 at 9 p.m. pic.twitter.com/fbBpHE9uWS

— WSB-TV (@wsbtv) June 14, 2019

Steve Kerr is credited with designing one of the most fluid offenses in the league, one of unselfish ball-sharing and off-ball movement. He holds the record for the best regular season in NBA history with 73-9 in 2015-16.

#5 Mike Budenholzer - Milwaukee Bucks

Mike Budenholzer

Mike Budenholzer has changed the face of the Milwaukee Bucks franchise. Once he was hired as the Bucks' head coach in 2018, the team posted the best regular-season record in the league for two years in a row.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Mike Budenholzer dream of big things for Bucks — from @eric_nehm:https://t.co/6G88qoJ6uB

— The Athletic Wisconsin (@TheAthleticWISC) December 18, 2020

Mike Budenholzer has designed an incredible offense around Giannis Antetokounmpo, which led to the latter earning two consecutive MVP awards. He is also an incredibly defensive-minded coach, and many people credit the Milwaukee Bucks' defensive strategies to Budenholzer.

#4 Michael Malone - Denver Nuggets

Michael Malone

Michael Malone pulled off one of the rarest achievements in the NBA last postseason when he led the Denver Nuggets to two consecutive 3-1 comeback in the same postseason and became the only coach in NBA history to do so.

"What he did in that Utah series was history in the making."@nuggets head coach Michael Malone couldn't be more proud of what @BeMore27 accomplished in the playoffs. #MileHighBasketball pic.twitter.com/oooel2dCBI

— AltitudeTV (@AltitudeTV) October 2, 2020

Michael Malone was hired as the team's head coach a year after Nikola Jokic was drafted, and the offense he has designed in Denver has made Jokic into an All-Star. After missing the playoffs for many years, the Denver Nuggets have been a top 3 Western Conference seed two years in a row.

#3 Gregg Popovich - San Antonio Spurs

Gregg Popovich

Even though the San Antonio Spurs missed the playoffs last season, Gregg Popovich is such a legendary coach that he still makes the ranks 3rd in the NBA Power Rankings. He has been responsible for all 5 of the Spurs' championships and holds the record for the 3rd most wins in NBA coaching history at 1277.

With his 521st road victory tonight, Coach Gregg Popovich now has the most wins on the road by a head coach in NBA history. #GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/yKg7Ed1sYO

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) January 27, 2019

Popovich is expected to lead the Spurs through a rebuild, and his guidance will improve the young players' game.