Thunder’s Mark Daigneault has proven himself elite, and Coach of the Year honor is coronation

By John Hollinger 13s ago NEW ORLEANS — It was the third quarter of Saturday’s Game 3. The Oklahoma City Thunder had seen a commanding lead sliced to 10 points by the New Orleans Pelicans, and center Chet Holmgren was due for his second-half rest. With a 2-0 series lead and a short-handed opponent, it would have been easy to play it safe and predictable. But Thunder coach Mark Daigneault doesn’t do safe and predictable. Instead, he saw an opportunity to do something very different: Insert Gordon Hayward at center. Gordon Hayward! Not only had Hayward not scored a point...