DJ's NBA Midseason Awards: Choosing the Best Coach

This year has seen the firing of six coaches so far! To add to that, there are others who either seem to be on their way out or are adding to the speculation of their own demise.

That being said, who will be this year's Coach of the Year when the season winds down? Who will stand and take up the mantle of greatest basketball general for the 2008-09 season?

Well here are my unbiased (mostly) thoughts on who is in the race and who is leading the field at the halfway mark of the season.

Keep reading, as it just might surprise you when you see which coach I think should be number one. Then again for those of you who have read any of my articles before it might not.

Let's just say that a team's win loss record doesn't have everything to do with the ability of its coach.

5. Phil Jackson, Los Angeles Lakers

Phil deserves to be in this group simply because once again he has the Los Angeles Lakers in the running for the title.

Thanks to a cast of stars that includes Kobe, Lamar, Pau, and D-Fish, Phil's team is vying for the league's best record and ruling the Western Conference.

4. Doc Rivers, Boston Celtics

Sure, Doc has the help of the Boston Three Party but his development of the younger players has helped to keep bean town a front runner this year.

Rivers preaches 48 minutes of tough-minded defense every night, and thanks to that, his team is among the league leaders in scoring defense.

3. Mike Brown, Cleveland Cavaliers

Brown has guided the Cleveland Cavaliers to the leagues best record so far. On top of that the Cavaliers have been indestructible at home compiling a 20-0 home record so far this season.

Quite a bit of blame for this can be laid at the feet of LeBron James though. Which is why Mike lands at No. 3 on the list and doesn't lead (yet).

2. Stan Van Gundy, Orlando Magic

In the picture above, you see the typical Van Gundy pose. In his team, you see atypical championship contenders.

The Orlando Magic have surprised everyone this year by stepping over other Eastern Conference teams in the race for home court advantage in the playoffs.

Stan is a major reason for the success of his team.

1. Jerry Sloan, Utah Jazz

What the difference between the teams of our previous coaches and Jerry's? Simple answer is their records.

That's also the reasoning for Jerry being No. 1 at this point in the season. The Utah Jazz have lost well over 100 games to injury this year (including injuries to stars Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, Memhut Okur, Andrei Kirilenko, and Paul Millsap).

That being said, Sloan's steady and determined leadership has kept the Jazz's ship afloat.

Not to mention the man deserves a lifetime achievement Coach of Year Award!