The Oklahoma City Thunder held practice on April 14, 2026, as they prepare for the playoffs, awaiting the eighth seed from the play-in tournament. Head coach Mark Daigneault and players Jalen Williams and Isaiah Joe spoke to the media about their playoff readiness and individual confidence.
Apr 8, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Clippers guard Jordan Miller (22) is fouled by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jalen Williams (8) in the first half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
The Oklahoma City Thunder held practice on Tuesday. For the third straight year, they're enjoying a week off as they await to see who grabs the eighth seed on Friday at the conclusion of the play-in tournament.
Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault, Jalen Williams and Isaiah Joe talked to the media after practice. Expect OKC to roll out a couple of players throughout this week as they prepare for Sunday's Game 1 of their Round 1 playoff series.
Daigneault talked about the logistics of preparing for the four play-in tournament teams. Williams opened up about how he feels heading into the playoffs after being limited by injuries in the regular season. Joe talked about his confidence as he hopes to have a strong playoff run.
Here's what else happened at OKC's Tuesday, Apr. 14 practice:
Thunder practice today as they await their Round 1 opponent. The first of many playoff practices pic.twitter.com/aqr10hVTIl
Jalen Williams on how he physically feels heading into the playoffs: “I feel extremely fresh because I played like 12 games.” pic.twitter.com/U0PtU7KNms
Jalen Williams on Chet Holmgren: “I think All-Star will give him a lot of confidence. I think anytime you have solidified success, where people are realizing it, it gives you a little confidence boost. I think winning obviously gives you the utmost confidence.” pic.twitter.com/Z21YUuaoSb
Jalen Williams on how SGA has improved this season: “The 3s is the biggest. It's hard to put a finger on it when I think he's gonna get MVP again.” pic.twitter.com/4iWvirPaHu
Jalen Williams on if they talked about going back-to-back: “We’ve talked about it. Sam made a really good point. You can play the Finals back last year 6 million times, and there's a lot of times we don't win it. Like, Memphis, somebody can get hurt. You just never know. I know… pic.twitter.com/b7zGUsTqqV
Jalen Williams on the importance of homecourt advantage: “It's extremely important. Otherwise, I don't think everybody will be trying to get the records… Last year, it saved us a couple times.” pic.twitter.com/uc0BTNkPDM
Isaiah Joe on how he feels entering the playoffs: “I feel like my shot is in a good spot… I feel like we’re in a better position now than we were last season.” pic.twitter.com/rQttfwhdqa
Isaiah Joe on if they talked about going back-to-back: “I think something we do really well is we talk about where we want to be at the end of it all. But we understand that while talking about it, we still have to be present. We do a really good job at taint a day at a time.” pic.twitter.com/X62zB1Nlfp
Isaiah Joe on the importance of homecourt advantage: “It's a huge deal, especially whenever you get series where you may go 7. Obviously, it’s good to start at home every single time as well. You may also close out at home.” pic.twitter.com/wESJwV1iiY
Isaiah Joe on the Spurs being right behind them in the standings all season long: “We understand that we just wanted to be the No. 1 team — no matter what they accomplished, the games they won. We just understood that we took care of what we had to do.” pic.twitter.com/vhssnn3oYJ
Isaiah Joe on how Mark Daigneault helped him: “When I first got here and started getting, acclimated into the system, he taught me a new way to find shots. I've always been an aggressive shooter, but I never would have thought that one of my bread and butter will be slide outs.” pic.twitter.com/ziwRgozc4y
Mark Daigneault on Jalen Williams heading into the playoffs: “He’s doing a great job… Being an NBA player is not all ease. It’s a very trying thing. It’s a very difficult life to perform well in the NBA. It’s the best players in the world.” pic.twitter.com/thnFobrkqV
Mark Daigneault on preparing for play-in week: “We’ve got eyes on every series, every game and every opponent. We're doing all the legwork on all that continuously, just responsible planning to work it that way. But in terms of what we actually bring to the team, very little. We… pic.twitter.com/u7PJwOfKM6
Mark Daigneault: “Last year's championship was great. We earned it. No one can ever take it from us, and we'll have the rest of our lives to be the 2025, champions. But it's also over and completely mutually exclusive for this year's playoffs.” pic.twitter.com/LnPYKObE26
Mark Daigneault: “A lot of our guys are different. Chet Holmgren is a completely different player and brings different things to the team. The addition of Ajay to the primary rotation player, the addition of McCain. More prevalently, is the improvement of the returning players.” pic.twitter.com/9XzjYTRFHM
Mark Daigneault on Jared McCain’s playoff debut: “He’s not on his own curriculum. He's on the team. He's hearing the same messages that everybody's hearing. We assume the guys are ready to go. We don't assume they're not ready to go. I'm assuming he's ready for the physicality.” pic.twitter.com/5VNG2hxigS
Mark Daigneault on Jaylin Williams: “He's just a badass competitor that's always ready to play. You need those kinda guys. There's a difference between everyday confidence that you have and playoff confidence. He's got playoff confidence.” pic.twitter.com/Bd00xVOOQX
Mark Daigneault on Chet Holmgren: “We’re gonna get a better version of him in this year's playoffs than we've had in previous playoff runs. I also don't think this year will be his best year of basketball in his career. I think he actually has a lot of runway still.” pic.twitter.com/f6EERTX6lI
What did Mark Daigneault say about preparing for the play-in tournament teams?
Mark Daigneault discussed the logistics involved in preparing for the four teams competing in the play-in tournament.
How is Jalen Williams feeling heading into the playoffs after his injuries?
Jalen Williams expressed optimism about his readiness for the playoffs after being limited by injuries during the regular season.
What are Isaiah Joe's expectations for the upcoming playoff run?
Isaiah Joe shared his confidence and hopes for a strong performance in the upcoming playoff series.
When does the Oklahoma City Thunder start their playoff series?
The Oklahoma City Thunder is set to begin their Round 1 playoff series on Sunday following the conclusion of the play-in tournament.
Related Articles
Sports
LIV Golf is still going, but its days seem numbered and probably always were
LIV Golf's future appears uncertain as reports suggest Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund may withdraw funding after investing $5 billion. Despite assurances for the 2026 season, the tour faces challenges from low ratings and strong competition from the PGA Tour.
ESPN News··1 min read
MLB·Recap
Angels' Mike Trout hits another HR to join Aaron Judge in rare Yankee Stadium history
Mike Trout's 446-foot HR joins him with Aaron Judge in Yankee Stadium lore.
Yahoo Sports··1 min read
MLB·Feature
Tigers projected to take a gamble on the upside of a 6'3" prep bat
Detroit Tigers projected to take a risk on a 6'3" prep bat in the MLB draft.