Former Knicks interim coach Mike Miller joins Thunder coaching staff

Oklahoma City Thunder coach Mark Daigneault is slowly forming his staff. His newest addition is ex-Knicks interim coach Mike Miller.

Miller took over as Knicks head coach last December after David Fizdale was let go. In the 44 games that followed, New York went 17-27.

The Knicks would name Tom Thibodeau their new head coach on July 30.

At 56, Miller brings experience to the bench for the second youngest NBA head coach Daigneault. In his 31 years in coaching, Miller has been the head coach for 18 of those years.

Miller was the head coach at Texas State for six years from 1994 to 2000, seven years at Eastern Illinois from 2005 to 2012, four years with the Knicks G League affiliate the Westchester Knicks, and four months with the Knicks this past season.

Miller has had a similar career trajectory as Daigneault by earning his stripes in the college game and G League game before being called upon an NBA bench and eventually becoming an NBA head coach.

Daigneault started coaching in 2003 and spent the first nine years being on a college bench with UConn, Holy Cross, and Florida before joining the Thunder organization and coaching their G League affiliate, the OKC Blue, for four years. Daigneault spent last season on the Thunder bench under his former Gators’ coach Billy Donovan.

Both Daigneault and Miller spent several years in the G League working their way. Maybe Daigneault respected Miller’s journey and wanted him on his staff to help guide him through the growing pains of being a professional basketball head coach.

Miller won G-League Coach of the Year in 2018 when the Westchester Knicks finished with the G-League’s best record at 32-18.