Ranking the three best NBA head coaches of all-time will take a deep dive into NBA history. Really, you gotta start with the top 5 and dwindle it down from there. I mean, we have to consider all things, like wins, who was on the team, NBA Finals win percentages, and many more categories. So let’s dive in and find out who is fitting to be the top 3 NBA head coaches of all time.
Top 5 Best NBA Head Coaches All-Time
The most common names in this category are Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich, Pat Riley, Larry Brown, and Red Auerbach. It all started somewhere for all these coaches to reach the greatness that all five of these men had. To narrow these guys down to three seems impossible. I mean from NBA Championships, winning percentage, number of trips to the playoffs, etc. These great head coaches have succeeded at the highest level with the best talent. With that being the outline, here are the top 3 all-time, in my opinion
1. Red Auerbach
Red and his powerhouse of a franchise, the Boston Celtics, terrorized the NBA for eight straight seasons. Red used the psychological side of the game before anyone else made it a priority. He made it all about the team, not individual success. His team of All-Stars like Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, and John Havlicek listened to their head coach. The cool thing about Red was that he coached by himself. There were not all the assistant coaches as you see on an NBA sideline now. His coaching style and all that talent won the Celtics eight straight NBA Championships.
2. Gregg Popovich
Gregg Popovich has more career wins than any other NBA coach, with 1,364. He also has led the Spurs to 22 straight NBA Playoff appearances. Popovich has won five NBA Championships in his long, productive career. He has coached superstars like Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Victor Wembanyama. This shows how his coaching style and personality have reached the NBA. Popp has also had more than 20 of his assistants become NBA Head Coaches independently. Pop is truly a mastermind of the game of basketball.
3. Phil Jackson
My number one all-time best head coach, Phil Jackson, is an 11-time NBA Champion with the best career winning percentage ever at .704. He also was a three-peat NBA Champion three different times in his career. He accomplished all this while keeping superstars’ egos in check, such as Micheal Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Shaq O’Neal, and the late Kobe Bryant. Coach Jackson helped make two franchise dynasties with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers. With the reach this man has had on the NBA over the years, there is nobody near his greatness, in my opinion.
Final Thoughts
To tie all this together, these are my top three best NBA head coaches of All-Time. Now, I grant you plenty of great all-time head coaches as they are easily the top three. The way all three of these guys had a part of history with all their accomplishments and reach to players plus other coaches is out of this world. You can not say anything different about these all-time greats.
