Thunder Coach Mark Daigneault Downplay ‘Rivalry’ vs Mavericks

Despite that Oklahoma City ThunderSecond round exit in last year’s playoffs, head coach Mark Daigneault does not consider Dallas Mavericks rival. The The Mavericks handed the Thunder a 106-98 loss Last week, where the Chippi game led to five technical fouls between the two teams that is Thursday at Centuro Paicom on Thursday.

During Thunder coach Mark Daigneault’s media availability, he divided His thoughts on what some have labeled a new conference rivalry between Oklahoma and Dallas.

“No offense, but I think conflicting things are narrative-on-narrative for you, which I respect,” Daigneault said. “But at the end of the day, I’ve said it many times: You go through your season. We’re going to cross some paths with Dallas tonight. We’ve got to use this game to get better. We’ve got to come out of this game a better team than we came in. They have the same opportunity. When the game is over, someone will win, someone will lose. Let’s go West coast and play there; They will go wherever they go. And then we will meet again.”

GILGEOUS-ALEXANDER sat out last Friday’s game with a wrist injury, but will return to dominant action Thursday, scoring a career-high 54 points in a 123-114 victory at the Utah Jazz.

“With any of these games, we don’t look at it that way,” Daigneault added. “We’re running with our heads on it. It’s worked for us. It’s been effective for us to really not get distracted by any of the noise. And just focus on making the team better and we’ll continue to do that.”

The Thunder will face the Mavericks Mavericks Mavericks again, as the superstar guard is still recovering from a calf injury he suffered on Christmas Day.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is an honest entry after scoring 54 points

Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander revealed that scoring 54 points felt surreal. When a reporter asked him if he felt real when he scored 54 points, Gilgeous-Alexander answered Honestly.

“No,” Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t answer. “It felt like I could have had a lot more. I know it’s going to sound very spoiled, but I feel like I didn’t have a great night. I left a few on the table. But there’s room for improvement.”

Still, Gilgeous-Alexander doesn’t consider the 54-point performance his best game of the season.

“I feel like I wasn’t my best tonight, no matter what the line says,” Gilgeous-Alexander added. “I feel like I could get better — offensively, with a little real snapping, and on a couple of reads.”

The Thunder will look to build on their second back-to-back win at PAICOM on Thursday.