The Oklahoma City Thunder signed coach Mark Daigneault to a multiyear contract extension after emerging as one of the NBA’s most improved teams last season, general manager Sam Presti announced Wednesday.
Terms were not announced.
In a season when the Thunder were widely expected to struggle, Daigneault, who finished second to Mike Brown in NBA Coach of the Year voting last season, led the team to a 40-42 record and a play-in game victory against the New Orleans Pelicans. Oklahoma City lost to Minnesota in the second game of the play-in tournament.
Even without No. 2 draft pick Chet Holmgren suffered a foot injury and missed the entire season, Oklahoma City improved its win total last season by 16 games over the 2021-22 season, which ranked second among NBA teams.
Daigneault, who joined the organization in 2014, was promoted to head coach in November 2020 after spending five seasons at the helm of the Oklahoma City Blue, the team’s G League affiliate, and serving as a Thunder assistant in 2019. He has a 86-150 mark in his four NBA seasons.
He led the Blue to three straight division titles and four playoff appearances before joining the Thunder bench.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: www.espn.com