Round Table Discussion: Post-Trade Deadline Edition
By David Ramil
Sam Presti? Genius, lucky or a combination of both?
Livingston: There is no GM in the NBA, maybe even all of pro sports, who is as calculated and intelligent as Sam Presti. He’s not lucky whatsoever. All of what he’s done comes from non-stop hard work and research as well as a mind for building assets that no one else can claim to have.
Collums: Presti is as shrewd a GM as I have seen. His ability to not show his hand until the last second is unparalleled. None of this comes from luck, this man just exudes pure genius in the basketball world.
Van Sant: Presti is simply a genius. His patience is what makes him so successful at what he does. For years Thunder fans have complained about Presti not being active enough and not addressing team needs, but patient planning and no spending (see the Brooklyn Nets) allowed OKC to acquire five new players this season, all with different skill sets.
Stephens: Presti is a Genius. With that said, there is also a little luck involved to his success. Presti’s genius has mostly been shown through his draft picks and his ability to make a competitor out of a team that can’t go too much into the luxury tax. The luck was on his side this season when Kanter made it clear that he wanted out of Utah and the Jazz were forced to move him.
Lambert: A combination of both. He’s obviously a very smart general manager, but no trade happens in the NBA without a little luck from unhappy players and less competent general managers.
Fielder: Presti is as close to a genius as a GM can get. He’s often maligned for being “cheap” and supposedly botching the Harden trade but when you consider that just this year, Presti has turned Lance Thomas, Kendrick Perkins, Reggie Jackson, and Grant Jarrett into D.J. Augustin, Dion Waiters, Kyle Singler, Steve Novak, and Enes Kanter, a.k.a the Thunder’s suddenly terrifyingly deep bench, you can’t doubt the genius at play.
Riggs: Presti is as smart of a general manager as there is in the league. He has always remained patient, and piled up assets instead of spending big. He gets heat from a lot of Thunder fans, but look at what those assets have turned into. He has given Scott Brooks the deepest roster he has ever had to work with.
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