OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander joked at first when asked what makes Oklahoma City Thunder coach Mark Daigneault good at his job.
“He’s annoying. Always nagging,” the All-Star guard said with a chuckle.
He continued with a more serious tone.
“The best thing about him is no matter who you are, he has a standard,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And it doesn’t matter if you’ve been here five years, if you’re the best player on the team, if you’re the worst player on the team, if you just got here last week — there’s a standard, and you’ve got to play to it and live up to it on and off the court. I think that’s what’s allowed our culture to be what it is as a group. And it starts with him.”
Those qualities have been rewarded. Daigneault, 39, was named NBA Coach of the Year on Sunday after leading one of the league’s youngest teams to the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. He joins Scott Brooks (2010) as the only Thunder coaches to win the award.
Why US Catholics are planning pilgrimages in communities across the nation
Posthumous memoir by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to be published Oct. 22
Total solar eclipse 2024: Small towns prepare for crowds
Total solar eclipse 2024: Small towns prepare for crowds
‘The Blue Angels,’ filmed for IMAX, puts viewers in the ‘box’ with the elite flying squad
Ancient stone tools found in Ukraine date may be oldest in Europe
Tips for college students and parents ahead of tax deadline
Judge dismisses lawsuits filed against rapper Drake over deadly Astroworld concert
'Constantly learning' Imanaga off to impressive start with the Chicago Cubs
Artist Natalia Rak not told her Dunedin mural would be painted over