OKLAHOMA CITY, Nov. 25, 2020 – Oklahoma City Thunder Head Coach Mark Daigneault announced his coaching staff today. Mike Wilks, Dave Bliss and David Akinyooye will be joined by Mike Miller as assistant coaches and Zach Peterson and Kameron Woods will serve as player development coaches.
“This group has proven to be great collaborators during their time with the Thunder, complementing their ability to help develop our team and players,” said Daigneault. “They all share a deep commitment and understanding for the values of the organization and are dedicated to being continuous learners. I’m looking forward to welcoming Mike to the Thunder and our coaching staff as we work to maximize our team and program.”
Wilks is set to begin his second year as an assistant coach after spending the previous seven seasons with Oklahoma City as a senior pro evaluation scout. Wilks is the second former Thunder player (Royal Ivey) to join the team’s coaching ranks. He enjoyed a seven-year NBA playing career where he appeared in 233 games with ten different NBA teams.
Bliss returns for his second season on the Thunder bench after spending the 2018-19 season as a senior player development coach for the Thunder. Bliss returned to Oklahoma City in 2018 after spending the three previous seasons with the New York Knicks as a player development coach. He previously worked with the Thunder as video analyst/player development coach from 2010-15 and last summer Bliss served as the head coach of the Thunder’s summer league team.
Akinyooye enters his second season as an assistant coach with the Thunder after spending the previous four years as an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Blue. Akinyooye came to Oklahoma City in 2015 following a one-year stint as an assistant coach in Lyon, France with Asvel Lyon-Villeurbanne Basket. Prior to his time in Lyon, he served as a player development quality assurance assistant with the San Antonio Spurs during their 2013-14 NBA championship season.
Miller brings nearly three decades of coaching experience to the Thunder after spending the 2019-20 season as an assistant coach for the New York Knicks before assuming the role of interim head coach last December. Miller was moved to his position on the NBA bench after four years at the helm of the NBA G League’s Westchester Knicks. Before moving to New York in 2015, Miller spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s G League affiliate. He has also spent time as a head coach at Eastern Illinois University (2005-12) and Texas State University (1994-00) and has served as an assistant coach at UC Riverside (2012-13), Kansas State (2001-05), Texas State (1992-94), Sam Houston State (1990-91) and Western Illinois (1989-90).
Peterson returns to the Thunder sideline after spending the 2019-20 campaign with Oklahoma City as a player development coach. Previously, he served as the head video coordinator for the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2018-19 season. Prior to his time in Milwaukee, Peterson spent four years with the Atlanta Hawks, where he quickly climbed the ranks from a video intern in 2014 to an assistant video coordinator in 2016 and finally the head video coordinator for the 2017-18 season. Peterson began his work in sports as he attended Michigan State University from 2009-13, spending his first two years as the student manager for the women’s basketball team before working with the men’s team his junior and senior years.
Woods joins the Thunder bench after two seasons as an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Blue. He previously played as a forward for the Blue for two seasons. In his G League career, he appeared in 99 games (43 starts) and averaged 4.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 23.7 minutes per game. A Butler University product, Woods finished his four-year collegiate career as the second leading rebounder in the school’s history with 956 rebounds. He led the Bulldogs in blocked shots in all four seasons.