Mark Daigneault hates Skittles
Every once in a while, I’ll find a video on Twitter that I rewatch endlessly. It’s usually a meme or a ridiculous basketball highlight. A few days ago, I stumbled across this clip from the Oklahoma City Thunder, and I think I fell in love with head coach Mark Daigneault:
Full quote:
“The initial Skittles vs. Broccoli conversation was more about you guys than it was about Tre Mann. Tre Mann is focused on his broccoli, and so is Poku. I think there’s a tendency to get excited about players, and to want to press fast forward on a process that is very arduous, and slow, and gradual. Twitter is not a platform that’s designed for progress. It’s a platform that’s designed for Skittles. Twitter is just Skittles everywhere. And if there’s not Skittles, you just make Skittles up and you put them on Twitter. Twitter is not a platform for progress. If you’re focused on progress, progress is slow… There’s regression before there’s breakthroughs. There’s a lot more days that seem invisible and mundane. You don’t build a really strong foundation by putting the drapes up and painting the walls. You build the foundation, and that’s probably the most important part of the process — and we are not skipping steps with that.”
Have you ever been in a situation where someone starts talking and you immediately think, “Holy shit, this person is really good at their job”? That’s how I felt listening to Mark Daigneault talk about his players, development, and how Twitter’s prioritization of highlights can force us to focus on flashes of greatness instead of the process of getting there.
I’ll be the first to admit it: I am the person Daigneault is talking about in the clip. I obsess over Josh Giddey’s flashes of playmaking brilliance. I yearn for more Aleksej Pokusevski content, because I am never sure what the hell he is doing on the court. I just know it looks cool.
Skittles are a top-five candy. Super flavorful. Awesome in the moment, but terrible for you in the long run. Broccoli, on the other hand, is great for you. It just doesn’t taste very good. It’s wise to eat broccoli more often than Skittles if you want to live a healthy lifestyle.
In Daigneault’s mind, Skittles represent all of the things that Thunder cannot care about right now. Stats do not matter. Highlights do not matter. The expectations we have for what a player could become do not matter. At this point in the rebuild, wins still do not matter. Developing the talent on their roster is the only thing that matters. The little things — defensive IQ, skill development, executing sets and game plans — is the broccoli that his players should be focused on.
OKC has clear questions they are dead set on answering: Can we see growth in our flurry of young talent? Can one of these guys pop into a higher outcome through game reps and individual attention they wouldn’t get on better teams? Tre Mann, Josh Giddey, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl look like they could stick around in the NBA in some capacity. Right now, that’s a major win for the Thunder. The next step, the arduous and mundane process of progress — that’s how OKC will find the answers to those questions.
Daigneault made the jump from the G League to the NBA this season. He’s made a career for himself through player development and his ability to connect with players. Nobody would know the rigorous process of becoming a solid NBA player better than him, and it’s evident in the quote — we often jump ahead in a player’s development, focusing on the flashes instead of the full tape. He’s right. I do imagine a world where Josh Giddey is the premier passer in the NBA. I do fantasize about Poku putting on 60 pounds and having Giannis’ career. That’s me, making the mistake of jumping years ahead and focusing on what these players could be.
To hear Daigneault use the Skittles analogy made me smile. He gets it. And he’s consistent, too:
I’m not sure how long the Thunder will take before they make a push for the postseason. Their treasure trove of draft picks could eventually net them another star to pair with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. In the meantime, their young players will need to continue to make strides — and focus on their broccoli.
Imagine this: It’s 2026. The Oklahoma City Thunder have just won their first playoff game since August 31st, 2020. Head coach Mark Daigneault steps into the press room and sits down at the table, cameras flashing in his face before he can even muster a word. He looks down to adjust the microphone, but there’s no mic — it’s just a big bowl of Skittles. He glances up, reaches in his pocket under the table, and pulls out an entire head of broccoli.