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The Oklahoma City Thunder head coaching search is finally coming to an end.
The Thunder are hiring Mark Daigneault to be the head coach of the franchise and replace Billy Donovan, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Wednesday morning.
Daigneault spent five seasons as the coach of the Oklahoma City Blue, the G League team. Under him, the team won three division titles, had four playoff appearances and posted an overall record of 143-107 (.572)
He joined the NBA staff as an assistant coach for the Thunder last season.
Daigneault, 35, got his bachelor’s degree from UConn, where he was a student manager for the Huskies, and master’s degree from Florida. He was an assistant coach at the College of the Holy Cross from 2007-2010 and then served with the University of Florida from 2010-2014. He was hired by the Thunder franchise in the summer of 2014.
In September, the Thunder announced Donovan and the organization had mutually parted ways in a press release that alluded to a rebuild. Donovan has since signed to be the Chicago Bulls head coach.
Oklahoma City spent the next two months searching for a head coach. In an offseason with nine head coaching changes, the franchise was the final one to hire a new head coach.
It comes just in time for the first player moves of the offseason. The NBA draft is just one week away, and then free agency is set to begin on Nov. 20.
This tight time frame will be eased by Daigneault’s familiarity with the team and its objectives.
Wojnarowski wrote that general manager Sam Presti thinks Daigneault has a proven track record that includes “connecting with players, teaching the game and making the kind of short- and longer-term adjustments that are crucial for a franchise that is transitioning out of playoff contention and toward a younger, developmental roster.”
Now that the team has a head coach, the 2020-21 season can officially begin for Oklahoma City.
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