Thunder coach noted Tre Mann's stellar start: 'He's awesome'

The Oklahoma City Thunder had 57 wins a year ago and are off to a 4-0 start this season, with almost everyone picking them to leave the Western Conference. It was a quick reconstruction, but there were numerous squad changes.

With this roster move, players across the NBA are gaining prominence, most notably Charlotte Hornets bench guard Tre Mann, who is averaging a career-best 20 points, three assists, nearly four rebounds and one steal per game while shooting 44 percent of his game Hitting from the floor, 43 percent from beyond the arc and perfect at the charity stripe.

Fresh off a 27-point game against the Toronto Raptors for the Buzz City Crew, Thunder bench boss Mark Daigneault was asked a question that simply referred to Mann's name, and the sideline player couldn't contain his excitement about the guard's rise in Charlotte .

“He's doing great by the way, he's awesome,” Daigneault chimed in with a smile when he heard Tre's name in the middle of a question related to one of the bank's boss's philosophy.

In a follow-up question, Thunder on SI asked the Thunder head coach how often he can check in or stay in touch with his former players in the NBA while in charge of one of the 30 franchises, and he gushed about how beneficial it is be for the program.

“I haven't seen much of it, we're obviously aware of it and keeping an eye on these guys. These guys have relationships here and are in easy contact with some people here,” Daigneault explained. “Above all, we want them to do well because.” They’re great people, Lindy [Waters III]It's night [Tuesday]Josh [Giddey]Tre [Mann[, [Jeremiah] Robinson-Earl plays for New Orleans, Vit [Krejci] plays for Atlanta. We want these guys to do well. We think it reflects the program well. We ask the players for their commitment to our program and it has to be something that will benefit them as well so that they are fully committed to it and that is why we lean on that.”

Players – and agents – across the NBA are noticing the foundation the Thunder have laid for players, so much so that even if things don't work out in Oklahoma City, they have the tools to succeed. Daigneault brought the quotes back to Mann, raving about him as a person who could get anything done.

“When guys start here and leave here and keep going and have success, especially when they behave the way these guys behave here, I mean, Tre.” [Mann]“That said, model citizen, we stand behind them, we support them, we’re happy to see it,” Daigneault said after Wednesday’s game against the Spurs.

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