Mark Daigneault says his Coach of the Year vote went to Mike Brown

Apr 3, 2023, 11:41 AM

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - NOVEMBER 25: Head coach Mike Brown of the Sacramento Kings reacts during th...

(Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

Editor & Kings Beat Writer

As the NBA regular season winds down, the debates around the end-of-season awards are beginning to heat up.

With the Sacramento Kings having ended the 16-season playoff drought, all signs point to head coach Mike Brown being named Coach of the Year for the second time in his career (2009).

According to Vegas Insider, Brown is the heavy favorite to bring home the hardware (-1600), while Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla (+650), Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone (+800), and Oklahoma City Thunder first-year coach Mark Daigneault (+2000) trail.

Daigneault, who is viewed as a possibility to win the award after leading the rebuilding Thunder to an impressive season that could end with a Western Conference Play-In appearance, met with the media on Monday and disclosed his vote for the award.

“I voted for Mike Brown,” Daigneault said in a video that OKC Thunder Wire’s Clemente Almanza shared on Twitter.

“[Sacramento] has not made the playoffs in a long time, and I think because of that, there was an external stigma that existed around that team. He really has brought a swagger and confidence to a group and to an organization that externally looked like it needed it.”

Mark Daigneault disclosed that he voted for Mike Brown for the NBCA’s COTY, saying he’s admired the job he’s done for a franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2006:

“I have a lot of admiration for the cultural flip that he’s been able to do there.” pic.twitter.com/eHd4e8JJmW

— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) April 3, 2023

Coaches and media will cast their votes in the coming days before the NBA begins announcing winners for the awards during the Playoffs.

While we will have to wait a little longer to find out if Brown will become the first Sacramento Kings head coach to win Coach of the Year since Cotton Fitzsimmons did so in 1979, it appears that there is a strong chance that the 53-year-old secures the honor during the upcoming playoff run.

Next Game

The Kings will hit the road for a back-to-back that will begin on Tuesday night in New Orleans against a Pelicans team looking to jump into the sixth spot in the Western Conference standings.

Be sure to get all of your Kings vs. Pelicans coverage right here on Sactown Sports 1140 beginning at 3:30 PM PST on Game Night with Scott Marsh and Henry ‘The High Flyer’ Turner before a 5:00 PM PST tip-off from downtown New Orleans.