MVP Preview: Which Coach Reigns Supreme?

Unlike NBL22, the Lindsay Gaze Coach of the Year trophy is absolutely guaranteed to have a brand new name on it this season.

Chase Buford, while nominated last season alongside Melbourne’s Dean Vickerman, fell at the last hurdle as Tasmania coach Scott Roth took out the award. Adam Forde has rebounded from disappointment in his first two seasons as a head coach – first with Sydney, then Cairns – to take his side to new heights in his second season in charge of the Snakes, while Mody Maor stepped into a pair of Dan Shamir-sized shoes at the Breakers to earn a nomination in his first ever season as a head coach.

The NBL Coach of the Year honour has been awarded every year since 1980, and is named after legendary coach Lindsay Gaze who coached the Melbourne Tigers for 21 years. He won the award himself three times while at the Tigers.

NBL Media runs through the history of the award, and why each nominee can take home the trophy.

Watch the NBL MVP Awards, presented by Hungry Jack's, live on ESPN via Kayo and Foxtel from 8.30pm AEDT on Tuesday, February 7. 

Last five winners

NBL22 – Scott Roth (Tasmania JackJumpers)
NBL21 – Trevor Gleeson (Perth Wildcats)
NBL20 – Mike Kelly (Cairns Taipans)
NBL19 – Dean Vickerman (Melbourne United)
NBL18 – Dean Vickerman (Melbourne United)

Multiple winners

Brian Goorjian – 6
Joey Wright, Lindsay Gaze - 3
Trevor Gleeson, Dean Vickerman, Gordie McLeod, Andrej Lemanis, Ian Stacker, Brendan Joyce, Alex Black, Brian Kerle, Bob Turner – 2

Australian basketball legend Brian Goorjian has won the NBL Coach of the Year award six times - 1992, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008 and 2009.

The nominees

Chase Buford (Sydney Kings), Adam Forde (Cairns Taipans), Mody Maor (New Zealand Breakers)

Chase Buford - His credentials:

The stats: 19 wins, 7 losses, 2487 points for, 2257 points against, 110.19 points percentage

Why he wins: The Sydney Kings have been the best team in the competition all season, and the reigning champs have been irresistible, despite the fact they lost some key pieces between their NBL22 triumph and the beginning of this season.

Out were the import trio of Jaylen Adams, Ian Clark and Jarell Martin, in come Derrick Walton Jr, Justin Simon and Tim Soares.

They also lost key depth in Tom Vodanovich, Wani Swaka Lo Buluk and Next Star Makur Maker – but the Kings have just kept on keeping on.

Does being the coach of the best team automatically make you the best coach in the competition? Probably not. Does being the coach of the best team after losing key pieces the key pieces from a championship triumph make you the best coach? Maybe.

The Kings have rebounded from every defeat they've encountered this season, and have only lost back-to-back games twice this campaign. Buford just keeps managing to keep his side switched on and raring to go at all times - which is an achievement in itself.

Why he doesn’t: Despite losing those key pieces the Kings have played around the level expected of them this season – such are the high standards placed on any team that comes into the season as reigning champions.

They finished NBL22 in third place with a 19-9 record – and with two games to go in NBL23 they’re sitting at 19-7. Has the team improved enough to justify Buford’s selection as Coach of the Year?

The expert says: “Chase has lost three of the best imports to come out here – as a group – and then still continued to win, and his team will finish in first place. If you’re looking for a candidate who’s done the right thing by the players and taught these players hoe to win then he’s certainly the candidate. He’s been a winner from day one since waling into Australia.” – Two-time NBL Champion and former Sydney Kings assistant coach Lanard Copeland.

Chase Buford coaches the Sydney Kings during Round 10 against the New Zealand Breakers.

Adam Forde - His credentials:

The stats: 17 wins, 10 losses, 2371 points for, 2305 points against, 102.86 points percentage.

Why he wins: After finishing second-bottom under Adam Forde in NBL22, the Cairns Taipans have re-tooled and reset to become genuine title contenders this season.

They’re assured of finishing in the top three, and their off-season import additions of Shannon Scott and DJ Hogg have complemented the existing stars Tahjere McCall and Keanu Pinder perfectly.

After being an afterthought at the Adelaide 36ers, Keanu Pinder has evolved in his two seasons under Forde to become one of the most dangerous players in the league and touted as another potential graduate into the NBA.

Even without their star the Taipans have excelled – they’ve registered a 6-1 record without Pinder so far this season.

The exceptional improvement of Forde and his side is, quite possibly, the best redemption story in the competition - and the only one to rival it would be the story of what fellow nominee Mody Maor has done at the Breakers.

They've found ways to win the tough games all season, and while it may have taken its toll on the players' across the course of a gruelling campaign, it's allowed the club to elevate itself back to the top end of the table.

Why he doesn’t: The Taipans’ late-season form has seen them go from potential first-place finishers to likely third-place finishers in the space of two weeks.

Although, like most teams, they have their injury issues, the Taipans have won just two of their last four games, and Monday night’s defeat to Adelaide saw Forde admit he thinks his team will now finish third.

While they’ve been one of the best teams all season, their points percentage of 102.86 shows they’ve struggled to add that cutting edge to blow teams out the water when the opportunity presents itself – which is, generally, a key hallmark of a championship team. Just three of their 17 wins have come by ten or more points – and all of them finished as blowouts wins over 20. They either stroll to victory or, more often than not, do it the hard way.

The expert says: “The culture change in Cairns has been tremendous. To see these guys – a couple of years ago the Cairns Taipans just weren’t the same team, but now they look like they’re enjoying basketball, they’re having fun, and they’re winning. They all love their coach and he backs his team. Whenever there’s any problems with any players he has their backs 100 per cent. The fact they’re winning means he has totally turned that program around.” - Lanard Copeland

Cairns coach Adam Forde coaching his side in its Round 17 clash with South East Melbourne.

Mody Maor - His credentials:

The stats: 16 wins, 10 losses, 2252 points for, 2090 points against, 107.75 points percentage.

Why he wins: Has the addition of a new head coach ever had such a drastically positive impact on a side as Mody Maor taking the reins at the Breakers?

Just five wins last season was the cherry on top of a horrific couple of years for the entire Breakers’ organisation, but this season the whole club looks to be reinvigorated – and much, if not all, of that can be attributed to Maor.

The Breakers could finish as high as second in NBL23 and they’ve established themselves as one of the most horrible teams to play against thanks to their stifling defence and physical offence. The side has been broken down and rebuilt by the Israeli head coach, to great effect.

Why he doesn’t: At one point it looked almost nailed on that New Zealand would cap off their resurgence with a first-placed finish to the regular season. Then the new year rolled around.

The Breakers kicked off 2023 with four straight losses – including one to the bottom-placed Illawarra Hawks – and looked both exhausted and bereft of ideas.

They’ve since rebounded with three straight wins – with one coming in a classic over Sydney – but that late season slump was both alarming and damaging to the side’s prospects to finish off the campaign.

The expert says: “There’s no secret about the trouble and the things New Zealand has had to go to in the last couple of years. Last year they didn’t give up but the camaraderie and morale was just down the whole year. To see them now and to have those fans behind them – I’ve heard a couple of players speak about the relationship with the coach, it’s fantastic. They love him, he loves them, and he’s been passionate since day one when he was assistant coach running and yelling up and down the sidelines. He’s a very passionate guy who loves what he’s doing, and the players love him as well.” - Lanard Copeland.

Mody Maor coaches the New Zealand Breakers in Round 8 against the Brisbane Bullets.