OKC Thunder: Darius Bazley all smiles, praise for Mark Daigneault at Media Day

The OKC Thunder kicked off their 2021-22 season with their annual Media Day session on Monday afternoon. The precursor to NBA training camp which starts tomorrow for Oklahoma City, sitting a week from their first preseason game.

I was fortunate enough to be involved in Media Day as a member of the media and was on zoom for each player’s big press conference in the Media room. On Media Day, players go to a ton of different stations that include photo shoots, creating content you see on social media and at the game on the jumbotron, and more. They also meet with the mass media, and after running through the entire roster, what stuck out to me the most this afternoon was Darius Bazley.

OKC Thunder forward Darius Bazley all smiles at Media Day

A year ago, Darius Bazley made Media Day headlines with an interesting answer to an innocent question about where he was when the trades of Chris Paul and Steven Adams went down. It started a year of what felt like cold shoulder moments from Bazley to the Media.

I maintain it was overblown a year ago, Bazley is often concise with his answers but I would hardly consider him anything short of what appears to be a good person on and off the court from the peaks into his life we get on social media.

It is important to remember last year was difficult on everyone, these athletes are humans too going through the same pandemic we all are. I certainly do not want to come off as speaking for Bazley, because this is a total guess and guesses can always be wrong, but having been in all of the zoom media available’s last year and now this year’s media day, Darius Bazley just seems more relaxed, more comfortable.

To start a possible breakout season, Bazley brought his awesome social media side of smiles and goofy videos, to the media podium for the first time since I have covered the team as a media member.

Again, that guess could be wrong, but his smile and upbeat nature were noticeable when he sat down at the podium.

The answer that will get the most attention from Darius Bazley is his glowing praise of now second-year head coach Mark Daigneault. When the subject of the OKC Thunder bench boss was brought up, Bazley began smiling before the question wrapped up “I was already smiling as you can see. He is an amazing, amazing person. I am so grateful to be coached by him on and off the court. He has helped me grow so much. He is one of the reasons I feel so comfortable coming into this year.”

That alone is a great sentiment about the Thunder head man, but Bazley continued in what I imagined would be the best thing for a coach, or bosses of any kind to hear saying “There isn’t a single thing in this world I would not do for my mom, and Whatever Mark Daigneault asks of me, I am going to do.”

My mom passed away in May, and there was not a single thing I would not do for her until the day she died, a classic momma’s boy. Understanding that relationship, that respect for a person, It is impressive Mark Daigneault has put himself in the same sentence as Lynitta Cowan, Bazley’s mother. It speaks to the impact and connection Daigneault has with this group.

He gave an example of a moment that grew their relationship, saying after a game in Cleveland “Where I played terrible” Mark Daigneault had a conversation with Bazley on the bus and it “shifted everything, you could tell he cared.”

In that Cleveland game, the Oklahoma City Thunder won by 16 points, a late February win for the rebuilding squad. Bazley posted four points on seven shot attempts, grabbed seven rebounds, an assist, and swiped a steal in 30-minutes of action.

The next time out? The New Balance Intern put up 13 points, making 55-percent of his shots from the floor, going 3-for-7 from deep, grabbing five rebounds, an assist, and racking up another steal.

The OKC Thunder are glad to see Darius Bazley’s bright smile, as the team opens up training camp tomorrow, he says the environment will be “Competitive.” mentioning how competitive the pick-up games have been in the last few weeks.

So if anyone was worried about the viral spat between Mark Daigneault and Darius Bazley, rest easy knowing the two have an incredible amount of respect for one another.