There are several types of candidates to consider when considering a midseason Coach of the Year ranking.
There are the coaches who have exceeded expectations -- the ones who didn't get much respect in the preseason, ranked low in the preseason conference polls or AP Top 25. There are also the coaches who needed to rebuild rosters after losing talent to the NBA, transfer portal or graduation. Then there are the coaches who have done the most with the least -- they didn't bring a highly touted transfer group or recruiting class, nor do they have a team filled with NBA draft prospects.