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Mark Daigneault Tabbed as Coach of the Year, Second Time in Franchise History
The Oklahoma City Thunder made another 15-plus-win leap this season. After rattling off 40 wins last year - jumping from 24 victories in 2021-22 - the OKC Thunder found a way to win 57 games this season en route to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
Earlier this month, Mark Daigneault was tabbed as the NBA Coaches Association Coach of the Year honor. On Sunday, he swept the awards taking home the NBA's Coach of the Year award voted on by the media.
This marks the second coach to take home the honor voted on by writers and the third coach to grab a coach of the year honor. Billy Donovan grabbed the Coaches Association honor in 2020, while Scott Brooks was the NBA's choice in 2009-10.
After finishing runner-up in 2022-23, Daigneault won the hardware this season. Despite being pegged for 44.5 wins by Vegas in the preseason, the Thunder became the youngest No. 1 seed in NBA history on the 39-year-old's watch.
Daigneault started his tenure with the Oklahoma City organization as the bench boss for the OKC Blue before transitioning onto Donovan's staff in 2019-20. After Donovan departed for Chicago, Sam Presti hired Daigneault for the NBA role.
The Oklahoma City Thunder will take on the New Orleans Pelicans in Game 4 of their first-round series on Monday. The Thunder will seek a sweep and their first playoff series win since 2016.
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RYLAN STILES
Rylan Stiles is a credentialed media member covering the Oklahoma City Thunder. He hosts the Locked On Thunder Podcast, and is Lead Beat Writer for Inside the Thunder. Rylan is also an award-winning play-by-play broadcaster for the Oklahoma Sports Network.