Mark Daigneault Makes Classy Acknowledgement of OKC Thunder Fans Ahead of NBA Finals

Ryan Phillips | Jun 4, 2025

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault watches his team play against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference finals. / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Mark Daigneault is thankful for the fans in Oklahoma City.

The Thunder head coach acknowledged just how much the organization's fans have meant to its progress over the past few years. On the eve of the 2025 NBA Finals, Daigneault took time to acknowledge the role the fans played in the team's rise, as their support helped build to this point.

"The fans are unbelievably enthusiastic about the team," Daigneault said. "When we were rebuilding and we were winning a lot less than we were losing, the support and encouragement we got from our fans was really telling."

His full comments are below.

Mark Daigneault discusses the unique connection between Oklahoma City and the Thunder 🤝💯

The #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV begin Thursday at 8:30pm/et on ABC! pic.twitter.com/3YJqOJCDsK

— NBA (@NBA) June 4, 2025

Daigneault would know about the tough times. He was hired as head coach in 2020, and the Thunder went 22-50 during his first season. They went 24-58 during the 2021-22 campaign, then improved to 40-42 during the 2022-23 season. Things fully turned around during the 2023-24 season when they went 57-25, then 68-14 this season while reaching the finals.

It has been a long build for the Thunder but fan support has never been an issue out of the smaller market.

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