Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault knows it's easy to forget he's still molding a handful of developmental players who are coming off a championship run. Daigneault pointed out the growth in Jalen Williams amid his first All-Star campaign last season, and while he's working his way back from an offseason wrist surgery, Cason Wallace continues to improve.
Daigneault addressed the growth he's seen in Wallace before the Thunder's preseason finale against the Denver Nuggets at the Paycom Center.
“He just keeps getting better. He's a developmental player. He's young. This is only his third season. I think sometimes you forget guys are developmental players when they're that impactful,” Daigneault said. “Chet — high-impact player — still getting better. Cason — high, high impact player — is still getting better. Even Dub [Jalen Williams], last season was just his third year, and as high-impact as he was, he's still getting better. Cason has a lot of runway.
“He's got a lot of things he can still improve on. He worked really hard in the summer. He's not interested in staying the same. He's ambitious in terms of his work as humble as he is. He's definitely getting better since last season.”
In only his second season with the Thunder, Wallace averaged 8.4 points on 47.4% shooting, including 35.6% from deep, 2.5 assists, and 1.8 steals per game in 2024-25. He started in 43 of 68 regular-season games, as Cason emerged as an option for Daigneault to start in his small-ball lineup when Isaiah Hartenstein is relegated to the bench.
Mark Daigneault says Thunder improvement is ‘a necessity'
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault believes improving is a necessity in 2025-26. Daigneault discussed why it's crucial before the start of the preseason.
“It can come across as arrogant if presented the wrong way. We win the championship, and if you come out of that, it's like, we can still get better,” Daigneault said. “That's got a tone in it that doesn't feel great, and that's certainly not where we are. Improvement is necessary in our situation because everyone else is getting better. Both rosters, their coaching staffs, scheming, and getting better, their players themselves are getting better.”
It's what every NBA team strives to do during the offseason and into training camp ahead of a regular season.
“If you don't pace ahead of that, you fall behind very quickly,” Daigneault added. “So, I want to be clear that improvement is a necessity for us. We don't look at it as a luxury. It's something we have to do if we want to be good.” Daigneault concluded.
The Thunder will host Opening Night against the Rockets on Tuesday.
