Oklahoma City Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said the team’s work all season pointed to one outcome after Wednesday’s 128-110 win over the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome: a third straight No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.
“It’s a great accomplishment,” Daigneault said after the Thunder improved to 64-16 and clinched the NBA’s best regular-season record. “No two seasons are the same,” he added, pointing to the injuries, the long stretch of missed games and the challenge of staying focused after winning the championship.
Daigneault said the biggest reason Oklahoma City stayed on track was simple. “Their ability to come in every day and just embrace the day and the challenge that we had that day and not look backwards, not look forwards,” he said. “They attack every challenge together with a level of zest and joy.”
That approach, he said, helped the Thunder handle the pressure of being the defending champion. “When you win the championship, that kind of hangs over you,” Daigneault said. “It’s incredibly hard to be present in the next regular season.”
Oklahoma City made the game look easy early, building a 25-point lead behind 24 first-half points from Chet Holmgren and a sharp start from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort. Daigneault said the entire group arrived ready. “The whole team from the jump tonight was just really ready to go,” he said.
He praised the defensive tone, especially Dort’s work on Kawhi Leonard. “Dort, his first stint on Leonard, set a great tone all the way through,” Daigneault said. “Shai was off it early, activating his teammates. Dub was forceful.”
The coach also explained why Gilgeous-Alexander remains the anchor of the team’s identity. “He walks the walk on everything you’d ever want to be about,” Daigneault said. “He’s a good person. He’s a great worker. He’s obviously a great player, but he’s self-made.”
Daigneault said that consistency matters just as much as talent. “He’s a very predictable person,” he said. “There’s not a lot of highs and lows with him because of that.”
He also highlighted the Thunder’s defense, calling out the “invisible stuff” that often decides playoff runs. “Communication,” he said. “Making an extra rotation for a teammate, talking in transition, blocking out so that somebody else can get the rebound, rotating on a string.”
Daigneault said the Thunder can enjoy the reward now, but only briefly. “It’s good to have home court,” he said. “It’s a blank slate.”
