Thunder Coach Mark Daigneault Offers Insight: 'We've Got Guys Playing for Their Careers'

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault talked to the media this week after his squad notched another late season victory, this time over the top-seeded Phoenix Suns.

He said something interesting, something that’s been quietly understood but never quite explained.

Daigneault: "We've got guys playing for their careers, and you can't underestimate that."
— Joe Mussatto (@joe_mussatto) April 4, 2022

The reality of the NBA is that it’s a revolving door, and some of the young guns on this Thunder team have a chance to stick around. The Thunder culture likes to develop talent from within, which is why the current players view this ending stretch as an opportunity.

Guys like Theo Maledon, Vit Krejci, Lindy Waters and Isaiah Roby are making decisions tough for the Thunder over the last couple weeks. Each have shown flashes enough to ink a deal on the 15-man roster for next season, but the future and roster space are both unclear. How nice would it be for the Thunder to find a 40% 3-point shooter from its G-League affiliate in Waters and not overpay on the market?

That thought process also puts into perspective what is going through these young players minds. This is a chance, without any real stars on the court, to truly showcase your talent and skill. An opportunity like this in the NBA is very rare.

From the outside looking in, it seems as if the Thunder have made a competitive effort to position themselves for the draft lottery. Now trickling down to the last week of the season, nearly every player from the opening day lineup has been shut down and all eight active players have spent significant time with the OKC Blue.

Because of the lack of names in the lineup, and general perception, it’s always shocking when the Thunder comes away with a win against a team like the Suns. While it does hurt draft positioning, you simply can’t fault these guys for the effort.

It makes sense why the Thunder are constantly competing and surprising people when you think about the fact that this is a group of guys fighting for their next contract.

Every player on that bubble of being on the active roster next season is making it hard for the Thunder to choose, too. Roby, Maledon, Krejci and Waters have all exploded for big scoring nights and stuffed stat sheets. It’s clear that no matter the game, team or record, the guys in Blue will be playing hardest.

Want to join the discussion? Like SI Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.

Add us as a preferred source on Google