Two head coaches will make their All-Star game debut next month.
Kenny Atkinson of the East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers and Mark Daigneault of the West no. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder will serve as head tacticians of two of the four teams in the revamped All-Star Game in San Francisco, California.
Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson will represent the East in coaching one of the four teams in the 2025 #NBAAllStar Game (Sunday, 2/16 on TNT).
— NBA (@NBA) January 24, 2025
An assistant coach from his staff will also serve as a head coach of an NBA All-Star team.
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault will represent the West in coaching one of the four teams in the 2025 #NBAAllStar Game (Sunday, 2/16 on TNT).
— NBA (@NBA) January 24, 2025
An assistant coach from his staff will also serve as a head coach of an NBA All-Star team.
Daigneault clinched the spot much earlier after the Thunder’s 127-101 win over the Brooklyn Nets last January 20.
[Photo: NBA]
Furthermore, one of Daigneault’ assistants in the Thunder staff will also get the opportunity to coach for the other All-Star team. OKC currently holds a 36-8 record, 6.5 ahead of the second-running Houston Rockets (29-14) for the best record in the West.
This marks the reigning Coach of the Year’s first appearance as an All-Star Game head mentor. He also became the first Thunder head tactician to achieve such a feat since Scott Brooks.
Meanwhile, Atkinson got the nod after the Celtics’ loss to the LA Lakers earlier. An assistant from his staff in Cleveland will serve as head coach for another of the four teams.
[Photo: NBA]
The Cavaliers became legitimate title contenders this season in their first year under Atkinson, racing to 15-0 start and boasting a league-best 36-7 win-loss card.
Part of the 2022 Golden State Warrior champion squad as an assistant, the 57-year-old became the first Cavalier to coach in the All-Star Game since Tyronn Lue in the 2015-16 season.
He joins superstar Donovan Mitchell, who was voted as part of the East starters' pool, in the annual basketball festivity.
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