Sam Presti has been ahead of the curve for virtually as long as he's been with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He's drafted three MVPs, traded for another, and delivered an NBA Finals appearance in 2012 and a championship in 2025 with vastly different strategies.
With his latest move, a trade for second-year guard Jared McCain, Presti proved just how far ahead of the curve he really is—embracing a buyer's mentality when everyone else swore he should be selling.
Oklahoma City may have won the title in 2024-25, but all eyes have been on their salary cap table in 2025-26. Even with the second-best record in the NBA, concerns over what comes next for the Thunder's apron status are just as loud as the thoughts that they could repeat as champions.
It's understandable to some degree, as Oklahoma City is projected to be so far over the second apron that drastic changes are its only path to avoiding potential penalties.
The most common expectation is that the Thunder will decline at least one of the club options owed to Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Kenrich Williams. Said personnel losses would be difficult to incur, particularly with Dort and Hartenstein being full-time starters.
Rather than allowing fears over the Thunder's financial future to control his line of thinking, Presti has instead improved his team's roster—a risk that's only justified by the moves he's previously made.
Sam Presti spent years acquiring picks to land players like Jared McCain
Prior to the Thunder's rise to borderline dynastic status, Presti acted in a divisive manner on the trade market. He acquired a surplus of first-round draft picks, prioritizing the future in a way that few teams had ever gone as far in doing from the perspective of sheer volume.
Presti's bold strategy is now paying off, as the Thunder gave up a first-round draft pick and two second-round selections for McCain—thus completing a trade without losing a single player.
On one front, the pursuit of McCain signals the Thunder's awareness of how important it is to avoid complacency after winning a title. Oklahoma City may be ahead of the curve, but teams quickly catch up when those in pole position take their foot off of the pedal.
Thankfully, Presti accounted for that very possibility and could now hand the Thunder coaching staff three key pieces for the 2026 title run that they didn't have or feature in 2025: McCain, Ajay Mitchell, and Nikola Topic.
Thunder have short-term and long-term stability thanks to Sam Presti
McCain has struggled to convert from the field in 2025-26 after an extended injury absence, but he's still shooting 38.3 percent from beyond the arc through 42 appearances. Topic has unfortunately missed time himself after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, but he recently made his season debut.
Mitchell, meanwhile, is a frontrunner for Sixth Man of the Year with averages of 14.1 points, 3.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.1 three-point field goals made on .487/.350/.870 shooting.
Considering Mitchell played 36 games in 2024-25, Topic missed the entire year, and McCain wasn't even on the roster, Presti's sweeping improvements are fascinating to witness. He's not only gone all-in on affordable long-term assets, but has protected Oklahoma City from potential personnel losses by actively retooling for them—all the while bolstering their short-term ambitions.
Trading for McCain may have seemed strange when the Thunder already have salary issues to address, but Presti continues to prove that he will do what needs to be done to win. Today and tomorrow.