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NBA: Ranking every active head coach by playing career

By Corey Rausch

March 23, 2021; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
March 23, 2021; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Chris Finch
Chris Finch (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images) /

Every NBA head coach ranked by playing career: 14. Chris Finch

Chris Finch is the newest full-time head coach in the NBA and his path to the league is quite unique. He played college at the Division III level at Franklin & Marshall College and was a two-time Division III All-American. He was an elite defensive player and turned that into a professional career.

Finch moved overseas and played for the Sheffield Forgers of the National Basketball League and was part of the team when they moved to the British Basketball League. After four seasons in the league as a player, he took over as the head coach of the team. He won multiple titles in Britain before moving to the Giessen 46ers in Germany. He was fired after one season and then moved on to the Belgium league as the head coach of Euphony Bree, where he would ultimately win the league title.

After another stop in the Belgium league (Dexia Mons-Hainaut) Finch came back to the States, becoming the head coach of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA D-League. He led the Vipers to their first playoff appearance and first title in franchise history. He built a reputation as an offensive wizard over assistant/associate coaching tenures with the Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans and Toronto Raptors.