Although the Miami Heat haven’t made the playoffs in two of the last three seasons, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is still considered one of the best leaders in the league.
According to the 2019-20 General Manager Survey by NBA.com, Spolestra was voted as the second-best NBA coach by general managers.
San Antonio Spurs legend Gregg Popovich garnered the largest percentage of votes at 31 percent in the category. Spoelstra came in second with 17 percent of the votes.
Other notable names on the list included 2019 Coach of the Year winner Mike Budenholzer, who came in third with 10 percent. Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr rounded out the top four with seven percent of the vote.
Spoelstra is entering his 12th season as Miami’s head coach. Since taking over for Pat Riley in 2008, Spoelstra has earned a record of 523 wins and 363 losses, good for a winning percentage of 59 percent.
His most successful period with the team came during the Big 3 era when he led the Heat to four straight NBA Finals berths as well as two NBA championships.
Behind Popovich, Spoelstra is the second-longest tenured coach in the league. It looks like that record will stay in place for the foreseeable future as the Heat and Spoelstra agreed to a long-term contract extension last month.
