An honest look at the Thunder’s Mark Denois on the All-Star Game head coaching selection

After the head coach Mark Daigneault and the Oklahoma City ThunderWith a 127-101 victory against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, Daigneault posted the best record (35-7) in the Western Conference through games played on February 2nd. Daigneault was named the All-Star Game head coach and commented on the honor after Sunday’s victory.

Reigning NBA Coach of the Year Daigneault will coach the All-Star Game for the first time in his coaching career. He is honored to be named head coach of the Western Conference All-Stars.

“(It’s) an honor. A huge thanks to all the people behind the scenes on this in the organization that work with the players, not only this season, but in previous seasons, obviously,” Daigneault said. “This was good, and a lot of people have their fingerprints on it, so a big thank you to them, and then a big thank you to the coaching staff. A lot of them have been here for a long time and put in a lot of work.”

Marc Diagneault has been outstanding for the Thunder in this season’s G League

Head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder Mark Daigneault reflected on the rise of rookie Branden Carlson this season. While he is on a 10-day contract, Carlson’s progress has earned him consistent playing time since the Thunder’s 136-116 win against the league-leading Cavs.

Many players, such as Thunder everyday players Lou Dort, Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins, are domesticated through the Oklahoma City organization. Daigneault credited the members of his coaching staff. He also highlighted the emergence of some younger prospects, such as undrafted rookie Branden Karlsson and third-year forward Usman Dieng, who split the 2024-25 campaign between the Thunder and the OKC League affiliate Blue.

“He had a good time,” Daigneault said. “He got away with the injury, I thought; it was rusty. Then we used the blue minutes. As I (said) after the Dallas game, he played more minutes in a two-week period than anyone in the program. This allowed him to get back on the baseline and play the way he did before the injury. And he’s done a good job in his Thunder minutes since then.”

Dieng scored a dozen points in Sunday’s win. He also finished with three rebounds, two assists and one block. Wiggins also finished with 12 points, five assists and three rebounds. The two led the production of the Thunder’s second unit as they cruised to a 26-point victory (127-101).