Thunder's Mark Daigneault Will Coach in 2025 NBA All-Star Game; OKC Has 35-7 Record

With the Oklahoma City Thunder's 127-101 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, clinching a 35-7 record, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault has earned a coaching spot for one of the four teams in the 2025 NBA All-Star Game.

Daigneault will be the first Oklahoma City coach since Scott Brooks in 2013-14 to receive the honor, as the Thunder hold the best record in the Western Conference.

In addition to Daigneault, an Oklahoma City assistant coach will also serve as an All-Star coach for one of the teams.

After the game, Daigneault told reporters that the opportunity is "an honor."

"Huge thank you to all the people that are behind the scenes on that, in the organization who work with the players not only this season but previous seasons. Obviously this has been a build and a lot of people have their fingerprints on that," Daigneault said. "So, a huge thank you to them and a huge thank you to the assistant coaching staff, many of which have been her for a long time and put in a lot of work."

Daigneault won the 2023-24 Coach of the Year after turning around the Thunder, leading them to a 57-25 record after they finished 40-42 and 10th in the Western Conference during the 2022-23 season.

The Thunder have had a phenomenal year, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is averaging a career-high 31.6 points per game, along with 5.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 2.0 steals this season.

The 2025 NBA All-Star Game will introduce a new mini-tournament format, consisting of four teams and three games. Three of the teams will be composed of NBA All-Star selections, while the fourth team will be made up of the champion from the Castrol Rising Stars competition, held on Friday, Feb. 14.

The remaining two head coaching positions will be filled by the head coach and assistant coach duo with the best record in the Eastern Conference through Feb. 2, projected to be the Cleveland Cavaliers.