Tag: mark daigneault

Thunder sign head coach Mark Daigneault to contract extension

The Oklahoma City Thunder yesterday signed Head Coach Mark Daigneault to a multi-year contract extension.

During the 2022-23 season, Daigneault led the Thunder to a 40-42 record and an NBA Play-In game victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. The Thunder’s 16-win improvement ranked second in the NBA and at the conclusion of the season, Daigneault finished second in 2023 NBA Coach of the Year voting.

Daigneault was named the fourth head coach in Thunder history on November 11, 2020 after originally joining the organization in 2014 where he served as head coach of the Oklahoma City Blue for five seasons. With the Blue, Daigneault led the team to three straight division titles and four playoff appearances before joining the Thunder bench as an assistant coach in 2019.

FYI: New Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault is a big Bruce Springsteen fan

The OKC Thunder have a new coach, promoted from within the organization. Here’s the Oklahoman with some personal insight on the man who got the job:

The Thunder’s new boss had a song for his big day.

It was by The Boss.

Mark Daigneault is a huge fan of Bruce Springsteen. Thunder general manager Sam Presti joked that he didn’t hold that fandom against Daigneault, even though the coach talks about the singer all the time. Daigneault has even been known to blast Springsteen tunes during basketball practice.

He was thinking Wednesday, though, about Springsteen’s “Land of Hope and Dreams.”

“Because the first line is, ‘Grab your ticket and your suitcase. Thunder’s rolling down this track,’” he said…

Presti said after nearly two months of searching for a new coach, there were lots of reasons Daigneault was the right person for the job. How he relates to players. How he teaches the game. How he develops the talent.

The big Thunder news lately, aside from this coaching promotion, is that legendary veteran point guard Chris Paul’s name is appearing in lots of trade rumors. Coach Daigneault’s approach to the squad surely depends on if CP3 is still on the roster next season. Because if he isn’t, the team is rebuilding, and all sorts of objectives and expectations will change.