Sam Presti: A Look at His Best and Worst Trades as GM
By Ben Bundy
VERDICT: GOOD TRADE (so far…)
It had been a while since Presti had made a major trade, so long so that he became known for just staying put during the trade deadline. This could make sense considering that none of his prior trades really worked out that well for him. However, this season Presti decided it was time to make some moves and did he ever come through.
Just minutes before the trade deadline ended on February 19, the team decide to pull the trigger on a blockbuster trade that shipped out center Kendrick Perkins and guard Reggie Jackson. This allowed Presti to dump Perkins’ contract on someone else and get rid of Jackson, who was beginning to cause an issue within the locker room. That alone was progress, but the team also acquired center Enes Kanter, guard D.J. Augustin, forward Kyle Singler, and sharp-shooter Steve Novak.
It seemed like the team fixed almost every issue all at once. Kanter gave the team a young, athletic, scoring and rebounding center, something the Thunder have needed for years. Augustin provided an immediate replacement at the back up point guard spot now that Jackson was gone. Singler gave the team a player that could take minutes off of Kevin Durant‘s work load, which could prove to be big since Durant has been sidelined by injuries lately. Novak gives the team another reliable shooter, which never hurts.
Let’s not forget that only a month before this major deal Presti already had acquired Dion Waiters from Cleveland. All of these acquisitions made by Oklahoma City have given the team arguably the deepest team in the league. If the the team can recover from injuries, then the sky is the limit for them.
This year of trades could prove to be the most impressive moves ever made by Sam Presti.