The NBA's reigning Coach of the Year has been continuing his success this season, as his efforts at the helm have led the OKC Thunder to become the top dogs of the association.
While his statistical success is only just beginning, many fans of the franchise have acknowledged his valuable presence throughout the rebuild.
It's easy to think that after the last season and a half, Daigneault may already be the franchise's all-time greatest coach, though, throughout the club's history, the head coaching position has been one filled with great success.
Daigneault's direct predecessor is Billy Donovan, who coached the team from 2015 to 2020. Before him was Scott Brooks, who first brought winning to the Thunder.
P.J. Carlesimo is the only other coach the franchise has had since their move to the Sooner State, but his measly 1-12 record disqualifies him from contention in this GOTA race.
Only one of Daigneault, Donovan, and Brooks can be the best, but which one?
It's decipherable through a comparison of accolades, records, player development, and playoff success. While these three coaches can compete in every category, it appears Brooks currently takes the cake in each one.
Where does Mark Daigneault rank in GOAT Thunder coach debate?
Accolades
Each of the aforementioned coaches collected their fair share of hardware during their Thunder days. Brooks finished his Thunder tenure with three Western Conference Coach of the Month awards, the 2009-10 Coach of the Year award, and received top-three vote totals for the award in three separate seasons.
Daigneault was able to bring home a Coach of the Year award as well following his team's first-place Western Conference finish in the 2023-24 season. He also finished second in voting for the 2022-23 season, higher than Brooks's second-best rank at third, and Donovan's best rank at third.
However, he fails to match Brooks's number in Western Conference Coach of the Month awards, as Daigneault has only earned one through his five seasons in the association.
Donovan ties Daigneault for the lowest amount of Western Conference Coach of the Month awards, with one.
It may be important to mention, however, that Donovan and Daigneault both possess something Brooks never earned -- a National Basketball Coaches Association (NBCA) Coach of the Year award.
This award was only brought into existence in the 2016-17 season when Brooks had already parted ways with OKC. However, just because Brooks won the NBA award in 2012 doesn't guarantee that he'd win the NBCA version the same year.
Since the award was established, there have been two occasions in which the NBCA awarded a different winner than the traditional award. Respect among peers is something that should be highly valued, and we'll never know the way coaches felt that season.
But with or without the NBCA award, Brooks bests Daigneault and Donovan on the hardware shelf.
Postseason success
Brooks led the Thunder on their most successful playoff run in franchise history by way of a five-year streak of postseason appearances that peaked with a 2012 NBA Finals berth.
By the end of his OKC stint, he had seen a franchise-leading 39 playoff victories and eight playoff series wins. Brooks was able to lead the young quartet of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Serge Ibaka to playoff wins over the likes of Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Paul, and Blake Griffin.
Donovan inherited the team in the 2015-16 season and took them to the Western Conference Finals immediately.
Unfortunately, this was the year his team blew the infamous 3-1 series lead against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors. The following three seasons saw epic series collapses in the first round, including being on the wrong end of one of the most famous postseason moments in NBA history with Damian Lillard's go-home buzzer-beater that, ultimately, catapulted the team into a rebuild.
After this, Donovan was paired with the leadership of Chris Paul, which led the team to a surprise playoff appearance in 2019-20. Yet just like the previous three years, it ended with a first-round loss and, in turn, the headman's departure.
It's hard to measure Daigneault on this margin given the management was intentionally tanking for the majority of his tenure. These last two seasons are the only ones where the roster has been viewed as a serious playoff threat since Donovan's exit. Of course, the furthest he has gotten was a Western Conference Semifinals loss in a heated six-game series with the Dallas Mavericks in 2024.
Hopes are high for the upcoming playoffs and the years to come, but, for now, Daigneault has yet to reach the heights of his predecessors.
Player development
This is perhaps the closest of the three categories, with all listed coaches being neck and neck.
Given that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the frontrunner for the 2025 MVP, it's possible that each coach will have developed their star player into an MVP winner. We saw Brooks do this with Durant, Donovan with Westbrook, and, hopefully, Daigneault with Gilgeous-Alexander.
Although he struggled to develop young talent, veterans would often have their best seasons under Donovan. Westbrook, Paul George, Steven Adams, Dennis Schroder, and Danilo Gallinari all peaked under his tutelage.
Daigneault has been much more well rounded in this department, helping players smash through their glass ceilings with guys like Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Kenrich Williams, Isaiah Joe, and Aaron Wiggins all reaching levels many would have never predicted.
Once again, however, it's hard not to acknowledge the stellar work Brooks did.
During his reign, Durant earned his first and only MVP. Westbrook became an All-NBA mainstay, Ibaka went on to become the league's best shot-blocker, and James Harden won a Sixth Man of the Year. He took a group of, then, young prospects and helped them blossom into the stars they'd eventually become.
Revisionist history combined with a bitter ending has left a sour taste in the mouth of many fans when it comes to Scott Brooks, but, love him or hate him, he still remains atop of the list as far as greatest Thunder coaches are concerned.