Micah Nori served as Chris Finch's right-hand man with the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2021 to 2026. He rose to prominence after taking over sideline duties for Finch during the Wolves' 2024 conference finals run, following Finch's knee injury. Nori was long considered one of the league's best assistants, and he came close to landing a head coaching job in both 2024 and 2025.
However, he never broke through until this past offseason, when he landed a job with the Portland Trail Blazers. Nori has quickly shown that he long deserved to be a head coach. The Blazers are off to a rocking 8-3 start with back-to-back wins against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and Nori's schemes have been a big reason behind this start.
Micah Nori is elevating the Trail Blazers
Heading into the season, it was unclear if the Blazers would be able to sustain their success from last season. The rest of the West improved, and the Damian Lillard-Ja Morant pairing felt clunky. And while Ja has only played in four games due to injury, the Blazers were 3-1 in this stretch.
The bigger picture is that Nori is maximizing the roster around him, and then some. At the end of the day, that's what great coaches do. Likewise, Nori's offensive vision has given the Blazers a clear identity, and one that perfectly fits the roster. Nori wants to push the pace, make quick decisions, and attack the rim.
That's ideal for Deni Avdjia's skill set, and it's helped create open shots for Lillard. Nori has also used a lot of misdirection with his screens, which has opened up easy shots for the whole team. These creative schemes have led to the Blazers ranking third in offensive rating per Cleaning the Glass. With all due respect, they are punching way above their weight, and that's a testament to Nori's coaching.
Defensively, the Blazers haven't been stout statistically. But watching the games, their intensity and discipline stand out and look similar to what we see from the Wolves. Overall, Nori looks like a legitimate Coach of the Year candidate, and this shows that a head coaching opportunity was long overdue.
Nori's success shouldn't surprise Timberwolves observers
For those who watched the Timberwolves closely over the past few years, Nori's success shouldn't be a surprise. In fairness, it's hard to pick up on what exactly an assistant coach is doing. Still, Nori had far more responsibility than your typical assistant. Notably, he was in charge of the Wolves' rotations and late-game play-calling.
Anthony Edwards called him a basketball genius. Finch routinely praised him. Crucially, Nori also built strong connections with players, which is just as important as the Xs and Os. Plus, as noted, Nori showed that he can take over the reins during the 2024 playoffs and during various regular-season games when Finch was either ejected or unable to coach.
From both a schematic and personality standpoint, the writing was on the wall during his Timberwolves days that Nori would excel as a head coach. He's done exactly that in Portland. Teams that passed on him in previous coaching cycles have to be kicking themselves.
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