Could Vinny Del Negro Be In Contention For Coach Of The Year?

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Although the Los Angeles Clippers have cooled off since a hot start, the team is still one of the best in the league. It does help when you have a guy like Chris Paul controlling the action on the court. However, winning teams tend to help get their coaches recognized. Does this mean Vinny Del Negro will end up being a candidate for Coach of the Year?

Ordinarily, I would laugh at this until I was blue in the face, but I bet he ends up getting some votes.  Most rational voters would not vote him for but watch him as he ends up being in the top three of the vote-getters.  He is going to end up getting more credit for this team than he ever should.

Right now, the leader in the clubhouse has to be Mark Jackson.  He has taken a team that no one thought could contend this year and he has them in the thick of the Western Conference race.  Del Negro has a team that has two All-Stars, and he still does some of the wackiest things on the planet.  He still hasn’t learned how to call a decent play and his substitution pattern is beyond weird.

Remember, Del Negro was fired by the Chicago Bulls a few years ago and he was making the same mistakes he is now.  He will end up getting votes due to the performance of his team but if he wins the award, it is an absolute joke.

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