After Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault highlighted rookie Aday Mara's growth ahead of their preseason opener against the New Orleans Pelicans, fellow first-round pick Bennett Stirtz thrived in Tuesday's 116-110 loss. Stirtz led the shorthanded Thunder, playing without most of their starters and members of Daigneault's rotation, with a team-high 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting, six assists, and five rebounds.

After the game, Daigneault discussed what he observed about Stirtz's performance in the Thunder's first preseason game.

“He's used to having the ball in his hands. He was like the highest usage player in college basketball last year. So, moving off the ball is a little new for him,” Daigneault said. “During the week, you could see him kind of try to calibrate the balance of aggression when he's got the ball in his hands, and functionality. Today, I thought, was his best day despite the fact that it was a game day, in terms of that.

“He took the right shots. He attacked on the right plays. He kept it moving on the right ones on offense. So, I thought he had a nice blend as the whole team did, but he played very well on offense.”

For head coach Mark Daigneault, Bennett Stirtz, who the Thunder selected with the 16th overall pick in this year's draft, is a testament to the team's continuity he's observed throughout training camp.

“One of the things that's been great about this team, not only this year, but in previous years, is just the like-mindedness of all the players from Kenrich and Caruso that are early-30s players to the guys that are in the thick of their 20s, and to the young guys,” Daigneault said. “It's a group of guys that are professional. They're competitive; they play inside of the team; they're hungry and committed.

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“And it's top to bottom, regardless of anyone's place on the team or in the league. So, it creates a really positive environment where everyone seems to be speaking the same language, and it's had great power for us. It's something we're grateful for.”

The Thunder will host the Milwaukee Bucks on the second night of a preseason back-to-back on Wednesday at the Paycom Center.