Inside The Thunder

OKC Thunder Bench Boss Mark Daigneault Earns Coach of Month Honor

The Oklahoma City Thunder have seen head coach Mark Daigneault win the Western Conference Coach of the Month Honors on Thursday for the month of December.

Rylan Stiles

Dec 29, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault yells to his team on a play against the Memphis Grizzlies during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Dec 29, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault yells to his team on a play against the Memphis Grizzlies during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
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Thursday was a banner day for the Oklahoma City Thunder, even before it tipped-off against the LA Clippers tonight. It started with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams reaching the top-ten in fan voting of the NBA All-Star race. Then, Gilgeous-Alexander won the Player of the Month award for the second straight month. Now, the Thunder have bagged another award.

The NBA announced on Thursday afternoon that Mark Daigneault has won the Western Conference coach of the month award, as the Thunder ended the month on a 12 game winning streak to the tune of a 12-1 record in the month of December.

A year ago, Daigneault took home the Western Conference Coach of the Year award after finishing top five in the year prior. Now, the Thunder again sit at the top of the Western Conference with a 27-5 record - despite not having its fully healthy roster with Chet Holmgren sidelined for the majority of the regular season and Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein, Kenrich Williams and Jaylin Williams missing significant time.

Oklahoma City has a shot to win its franchise-best 13th straight game tonight against the LA Clippers, which would add another accomplishment to Daigneault's resume on his young career. The Thunder will have a tough stretch in January which includes its recent stint against New York twice, Cleveland Twice, Boston and Dallas.

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Rylan Stiles
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. 

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