Thunder coach Mark Daigneault's honest take on Ousmane Dieng's growth
02/05/2025 04:08 PM
Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault spoke highly about his forward Ousmane Dieng after Monday’s 125-96 win against the Milwaukee Bucks. Daigneault discussed the significance of beating a shorthanded Bucks before a reporter asked him about Dieng’s standout performance against Milwaukee.
Dieng led Daigneault’s second unit with a season-high 21 points against the Bucks, missing his career-high by one point in the Thunder’s blowout win. However, for Daigneault, Dieng’s offensive outburst is a testament to his growth throughout his three years with Oklahoma City.
“It really less about today for me with Ous. He had an injury. He came back. He was a little rusty. He went to the Blue in his third year. This is the third year he’s touched the Blue program,” Daigneault said. “[He] didn’t say a word about it. He just put his head down. Got to work. Got himself back in rhythm, in game form, and up to his baseline. And then, has built on that, and his minutes since then. I thought tonight was a byproduct of that body of work.
“He’s capable of nights like this. We’ve seen him do this before, but he deserves a lot of credit for the track that it took for him to get there. It was a very professional approach.”
Thunder guard Isaiah Joe also spoke to Dieng’s continuous growth.
“He’s developed quite nicely. He’s been more aggressive out there offensively and defensively,” Joe said. “He makes the right play. He’s growing as a person on the floor off the floor as well. So, just these few years that I’ve been here, his growth has been pretty good.”
Ousmane Dieng went 9-for-13 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from deep for the Thunder. He also finished with eight rebounds, five assists, and one steal in 31 minutes.
Thunder land Pelicans center Daniel Theis ahead of trade deadline
The Thunder acquired Pelicans center Daniel Theis and draft capital ahead of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline. The Pelican sent Theis and a 2031 second-round pick to the Thunder, according to ESPN’s Sham Charania.
After a second 10-day contract for undrafted rookie Branden Carlson ended earlier this week, the Thunder filled their final roster spot by landing Theis as a veteran center to fulfill a third-center role off the bench. After two stints with the Celtics (2017-20, 2021-22), the seventh-year big spent the past three seasons with the Pacers and Clippers before joining the Pelicans in 2024-25.
He’s averaging 4.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 16.3 minutes this season.
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